The Thief
by emoTWiLiGHT
Summary: Story motto: 'Heart On My Sleeve, Take It If You Please.' --- "As we were walking, I noticed several things about him..." What happens when a new vampire comes to Forks? Will Edward believe Bella? Will she fall in love? What will happen next? REVIEW!
1. Beginning of the Thievery

**Yay! I'm back with a new fic! Well, my only open story left is Weirder Than Fiction and I have severe writer's block for that. Odd, huh? Thanks to Ashleigh for the idea! haha, I was sort of complaining that I needed an idea, and her brilliant mind started one for me, and well... here it is! Hope you like!**

**Yes, I own Twilight. Stephenie gave me the rights as an early birthday present.**

**-rolls eyes- Kidding. Are you that gullible? Gosh. lol.**

**REVIEW!!**

**Bella's POV**

_"Are you sure you have to leave?" I bit my lip._

_"Bella, look at my eyes," he said softly._

_I looked up at his eyes. His goregeous, beautiful eyes. I fought to breathe._

_He chuckled, knowing that I was beyond dazzled. As always._

_"They're black," he prompted._

_I sighed. "Alright. Come back as soon as you can."_

_"I will." He pulled me close in a hug and kissed me softly before going to hunt._

I woke up in the morning, trying to forget that he wasn't there, holding onto the knowledge that he would return soon. I sighed.

Meanwhile, we were running low on food and I was supposed to go to the grocery store. I pulled some clothes on, brushed my hair and teeth, and left the house with the grocery list and money.

Great. Rain. Making this wonderful day oh so much better.

I got into my truck and fumbled with the heat, grumbling to myself. Why was I always incredibly fizzed off whenever Edward was gone?

Eventually, I got to the store and walked through, grabbing all the food I needed. It was a very quick trip; I had pretty much memorized the layout of the store.

Only three lines were open, and I picked the shortest. Of course it was the one with the slowest cashier ever. The stupid girl was obviously still in training. She hit the debit key when the person was paying with credit, forgot someone's change, and put eggs on the bottom of a bag, which caused the customer to get really mad. It took forever. I shifted my weight from foot to foot impatiently.

Suddenly, another line opened. "I can take you over here," a voice called.

I grabbed my cart and proceeded to hurry over. When I turned the cart around, I almost hit a person standing three feet behind me who was also traveling to the next lane.

"Sorry," I mumbled, preoccupied with the aggravation of the grocery store.

During my halfhearted apology, the person I practically ran into darted over into the next lane.

I breathed in and out, trying to maintain my cool. Why was I this easily annoyed?

As I waited for the person to be done in line, I checked everything in my cart, trying to see if I could cut anything out and go into the express lane. There was nothing I could cut out, but it didn't really matter since the express lane wasn't that fast anyway.

Bored, I looked at the person in front of me to see if they were almost done. Only a couple more items left, I sighed in relief.

Then I noticed that the person didn't look familiar.

He had dark brown hair, sort of long, but not disgusting. Maybe a skater cut or an emo cut. He was wearing a black sweatshirt and jeans. As he turned slightly to pay the cashier, my breath caught in my throat.

He was beautiful. Not in a girly way, but in a cute way. He looked like the type of guy every girl dreams of. Except me of course, because I had Edward. But this unknown person standing in front of me was as beautiful as Edward, but maybe differently.

Then it was my turn in line. I pushed the cart forward, emptying its contents onto the belt.

This cashier was quick, and I was soon done.

I grabbed my bags and turned to leave.

I started to struggle with the door when a white hand suddenly shot out from behind the glass and the door opened.

"Oh." Startled, I dropped the bag with the frozen vegetables. Luckily it was nothing breakable.

Whoever opened the door for me was the same person from the line. He scooped down and picked up my bag for me.

"Sorry. I saw you wrestling with the door and decided to help."

"Uh, thank you."

He started walking with me to my truck, still holding my bag of vegetables. The only other bag in his hand contained no food items.

As we were walking, I noticed several things about him.

One, he was hot. Two, he was nice. And three, he was pale and had the beautiful topaz eyes I had come to know and love.

He couldn't possibly be...? Could he?

**CLIFFIE!**

**haha!**

**And you don't even know his name!! :P**

**Blame Ashleigh, she said I had to do it. haha.**

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	2. The New Vampire

**I do not own Twilight. And that will never change. :'(**

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**Bella's POV**

We reached my truck then, and I started to fumble with the bags, trying to get my key out of my pocket.

"Here, let me help," he took several bags from me, freeing my entire right hand. I garbbed my key and unlocked my truck. I turned to relieve him of the bags, but he was already placing them in the passenger seat.

"Uh, thanks."

He grinned.

"My name is Daniel, by the way."

"I'm Bella."

"Hi, Bella." He reached out to shake my hand. His hand was, as I expected it to be, cold.

I bit my lip, trying to keep from blurting out the obvious question.

"Are you new to Forks?"

"Yes, I am."

"Well, welcome. Uh, what brought you here, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Not at all. I think I have some... friends that live here." His smile was mysterious, even though I knew what he meant.

Finally, I could keep it in no longer.

"Are you a vampire?" I asked without thinking. Crap.

His grin vanished. I closed my eyes, grateful that there was no one else in the parking lot.

I looked at him, afraid that he would be mad, and yet wondering why I cared.

"I suppose that you are the human the Cullens exposed themselves to?"

Was he mocking them?

I raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not sure what you mean. Yes, I am a human, and yes I know their secret, but they didn't actually expose themselves. They would never do that. I guessed...With the help of a werewolf." The annoyance in my tone showed through.

"Hey, sorry. No offense intended. I was just wondering how you knew. About me. Us." He blinked.

I nodded numbly, trying not to stare at his gorgeous eyes, for I knew the effect they tended to have on me, and I didn't want to think I was falling in love with this newcomer just because he was a beautiful vampire.

"Well, I suppose I'll see you soon, Bella."

"Er, what?"

"You spend time with the Cullens, don't you? I'm looking to join their coven. I, too, abstain from feeding on humans."

"Oh, right. That. Uh, yeah. I'll see you around." I climbed into my truck clumsily and watched him walk gracefully to his car.

I looked at the clock. Edward should be home soon. I looked forward to telling him about the new vampire in town.

My truck started with a roar, and I headed home as fast as I dared to go.

**Ok. I hate this chapter. Too short and slow. But, Daniel needed to be introduced and all. So yeah. Practically a filler chapter. lol. I think the next one should be Daniel's POV, but idk. I'm not sure what his story is, about being changed... so maybe I'll hold off on that. anywayyy REVIEW!!**


	3. The Story, The Fight

**Three chapters in one day! You know you love me! Prove it by REVIEWing please!!**

**i dont own Twilight...but I do own the new character. haha.**

**  
Bella's POV**

When I got home, I unloaded my truck and put all the groceries away.

After that surprisingly short task, I headed upstairs to wait for Edward. He would be done hunting soon, and then he promised to come straight to my house.

I didn't have to wait long before he was there. He came in through my open window. I rushed over to hug him. In his cold embrace, all irritation from earlier was forgotten.

"I missed you. Did you miss me?" I looked up at him.

"I promised I would. And I did." He looked down at me and caressed my cheek softly.

"Good." I snuggled into his arms furthur, resting my head against his chest.

He picked me up and carried me over to my bed, sitting me down next to him.

"What did you do while I was gone?" He inquired softly, playing with my hair.

I sat up straighter, excited to tell him my story.

"Well, I went to the grocery store. It took forever and it was aggravating, but guess who I ran into? Literally," I added, laughing.

"Who?" He grinned my favorite crooked grin.

"A new vampire! Can you believe that?"

He stiffened beside me.

"What? What did I say?" I was confused. Was this bad news?

"A newborn? Bella, do you realize how much danger you put yourself in everyday? I can't believe I left and let you come into harm like that."

I could hear the worry in his stern voice.

"No, no. Not a newborn. Just a new vampire. One that we haven't met before. Me, at least anyway."

"Bella, love, how do you know this new vampire wasn't a newborn?"

"His eyes were topaz."

Edward's eyebrows shot up. Probably from surprise. Not only was Daniel a vegetarian vampire, but he wasn't even thirsty when he met me. Maybe I'm not as much of a danger magent as Edward insists.

"His eyes were topaz?"

"Yes."

He got up from the bed, walking over to my window where he hummed in thought.

I decided to give as many details as I could.

"I actually almost ran him over with my cart. Then when I was trying to open the door, I couldn't because my hands were full but he opened the door from me. It startled me and I dropped a bag, which he picked up and carried for me. He helped me put all my groceries in my cart. He reminded me of you, a little bit, helping me out like that. I asked him why he was in Forks and he said it was because he heard about you and wanted to join your coven. His name is Daniel."

By this time, Edward had stopped his 'pacing' and returned to sit next to me.

"Did he offer the fact that he was a vampire?" Edward's voice was laced with stress.

"Uh, no. I guessed." I was very confused. Why wasn't Edward happy about a new vegetarian vampire?

He hummed again. This was getting very annoying. His response was different than I thought it would be.

"What?!" I snapped.

"Nothing. It's just impossible," he said simply.

"What?"

"If there was a vampire looking to join our coven, we would know about it. Either Alice would've had a vision, or we would have been informed some other way."

Was it just me, or was his tone a little condescending?

"Are you saying you don't believe me?" My voice rose at the end, all the agitation from earlier today coming back full force.

"I'm saying, if there was another vampire in town, we would have known about it. Your new friend probably just looks a lot like us."

Was Edward seriously accusing me of lying?!

"Not possible. I asked him if he was a vampire and he said yes."

Edward's eyes narrowed, flints of anger visible.

"Why, Bella? Why would you do that? Why must you risk exposing us like that? If he hadn't been a vampire, what would you have done then, hmm? Do you think about these things?" Edward may not have been yelling in volume, but his tone certainly made it seem like he was.

"But I knew that he was a vampire. He was pale, beautiful, cold, and had topaz eyes." I could feel tears of anger threatening to spill out of my eyes.

"If he was a vampire, why was he at the grocery store?"

"He didn't buy food, Edward."

"What did he buy then?" He countered.

I growled. I was getting really fed up. Why was he acting this way? Edward has never been outrightly mean to me, and he's never accused me of lying.

"I don't know, Edward! Household items, or something! I don't know, ok! All I know if that he was a vampire, I know he was, and he wants to join you guys! Get it through your thick head and stop accusing me of lying, or leave me alone!" As soon as the angry words escaped my mouth, I regretted them.

"Fine," he said. As quick as the words were spoken, he was gone.

"Edward?" I cried out. No response. I screamed and threw myself into my bed. Tears poured out of my eyes. Tears of anger, tears of rejection, tears of loneliness, tears of regret.

Why didn't he believe me? Why did I yell at him?

Why? Why? Why?

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	4. Daniel's Story

**FOUR CHAPTERS IN ONE DAY!? I've really outdone myself... and now I will probably have writers block for liek a month. lol. Hopefully not. I dont own Twilight. REVIEW**

**Daniel's POV**

After Bella ran into me at the grocey store and confirmed that I was in the right place to find the Cullens, I contemplated my reasoning for joining their coven.

I had been changed about two-hundred years ago, so I was still fairly new, compared to the others, but not young enough for them to dislike me. I hoped.

I was changed by an evil and sadistic vampire. At the time, I was nineteen years old, freshly in college. I remember that I'd had a nightmare that night and went out for a walk in the dark woods. It had always calmed me. Suddenly, two beautiful women were before me. One had flaming red hair, the other a light brown. I remember the brunette trying to seduce me, and failing miserably. She had turned to the redhaired one, complaining.

"Why isn't it working? There must be something wrong with this one. Let's just leave," she turned around and started heading furthur into the woods.

At the time, I was confused. The redhead pounced on me, pinning me to the ground.

"Hello, darling, My name is Victoria. You are about to die," she purred.

"What did I do?"

She laughed.

"My friend here has the power to control people very easily. Especially men. But for some reason, it doesn't work on you and that makes her angry. Therefore, you will pay." I had scoffed at the notion of a woman being strong enough to kill a man, but I wasn't going to fight her.

It surprised me when she bared her teeth and grabbed my arm, pulling my wrist to her mouth. Her teeth sank in, and I felt as if I was bleeding, but no blood was trickling down my arm. Fire engulfed my wrist as I felt the woman being torn off of me.

"What are you doing? Are you insane? We can't feed this close to civilization!" It was the voice of the brunette.

I suppose the women had left then, but all I felt for a week was pain. Pure pain. At times it was if I was on fire. At other times, it was as if I was being ripped to shreds. It was excruciating, and I wonder how no one heard my screams of agony during the time.

When it was finished, I woke up feeling significantly different. I was thirsty, and the one thing I wanted to drink was blood.

For awhile, I was confused, but I remembered feeling like I was bleeding before I felt the fire.

I was a vampire.

I'd heard of them, briefly, but never believed they were real. As I recalled the stories, fear of being a monster grew within me.I knew I needed blood, but I knew I didn't want to drink a human's blood and thus kill them, or turn them into a vampire also.

Since I had no one there with me to explain everything, I didn't know much about how it worked, but I got by. Eventually, a rabbit crossed my path in the woods and thirst overtook me. I killed the rabbit and went hunting for more animals. I was satisfied that I had found my way to quench my thirst without killing innocent human beings.

Soon enough, I was able to go out into civilization. I rarely felt any bloodlust for humans. Maybe it was the fact that I hadn't tasted human blood, or maybe it was because blood made me queasy as a human.

Either way, I hoped my abstinence from human blood was enough to let me be accepted by the Cullen coven.

As I made the travel to their house, I prepared myself for any reactions or questions they may have. I hoped that they would like me, and I would see Bella again. She seemed nice. My excitement grew as I got closer. I had never been in a coven before. I had never known that there were other vampires who drank animal blood until recently, and Iwas tired of being alone.

**I'm sorry. That was really crappy. i have no clue what things wer like 200 years ago, and idk if Victoria was alive then. and idk how he wouldn't have known about the Cullens until now. but all those details need to exist in order for my story to be the way i want it to be. so if it has plot holes, or anything like that, who cares? its a fanfiction. :P lol**

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	5. Emotions

**Yay! Chapter five. So, don't forget- I do not own Twilight. Review!**

**Bella's POV**

That night, Edward never came.

My emotions ranged severely, almost as if Jasper was there, manipulating them.

At first, I felt hope. Hope that Edward would be coming, he just wasn't there yet.

That hope vanished shortly after midnight, turning into anger. Why was he doing this to me? Why? It was totally unlike Edward to yell at me and then leave and not come back! What was his problem?

I pulled my quilt closer, wrapping myself into a ball as my anger turned into despair. I turned my head toward the pillow and sobbed. Will he ever come back? Why did I upset him so? Does he hate me?

That night, I cried myself to sleep.

**Daniel's POV**

When I arrived at the Cullens' house, they looked surprised to see me. I was introduced to everybody, and I began telling my story, watching everyone's expressions. Carlisle was the leader, so I payed the most attention to him, but the reactions of the one named Edward were very odd. I finished telling them my story and hoped that they would accept me.

"How did you know we were here, Daniel?" Carlisle was asking me. "Normally, we would know of your arrival long before it happened." He glanced at the pixielike one, Alice. I looked at her in confusion.

"Alice can see the future, but she did not see you searching for us, and she doesn't see us with you in the future."

The disappointment on my face must have been obvious, for he spoke again.

"That doesn't mean that you won't join our coven, I have to think about it. It just means Alice cannot see you."

"Oh, I think I have some kind of powerblocking thing."

Carlisle looked at Edward.

"I can't read his mind. It's a blank."

Carlisle nodded, taking that as a confirmation.

"Well then. My family and I are going to have to discuss this, Daniel. Thank you for coming to us. I'll have Edward find you when we have made our decision."

"Thank you, sir." Yes! They didn't hate me! Well, right away anyway. I wonder if I could possibly see Bella again and tell her, since she seems to know about them.

"Um, am I allowed to talk to humans here? There's this one that kind of ran into me yesterday and I would like to see her again, if possible. Her name is Bella."

"Bella." Recognition seemed to flash on Edward's face.

"What was your name again?" he was asking me anxiously.

"Daniel."

Edward closed his eyes and pressed him lips together. He looked angry.

"Sure, Daniel. Just be aware and don't expose yourself or kill any humans, all right?"

"Thank you, Carlisle."

As I was leaving, I could hear Edward saying something about Bella and growling when Carlisle said no.

What was that about? I shrugged it off and started on my journey to find Bella. But in a non-stalker way.

**Bella's POV**

When I woke up in the morning, I was still sobbing. But I realized, if Edward had really left, I would need to pull myself together for Charlie. And he probably didn't leave, he promised he would never do that again. So I washed my tearstained face and got dressed. Today was Sunday. I needed to do some laundry and some homework.

I sighed and headed down to the laundry room.

While I was folding some clothes, I heard a knock at the door.

I knew it couldn't Edward, he would just waltz right in. I set the clothes down and headed to the door. When I opened it, surprise met me.

"Um, Daniel?"

"Bella?"

"Yes."

"May I come in?"

"Uh, sure." I opened the door furthur. He walked in gracefully.

"Um, what are you doing here?" I hoped my tone didn't sound rude.

"Well, I just thought I'd come see you and tell you that I found the Cullens. They're discussing adding me into their coven. Isn't that great?"

"Yeah, great. Um, you were at the Cullens?"

"Yes."

"Was Edward there?" I bit my lip, not sure if I wanted to hear the answer.

"Yeah. All of the Cullens were. Why?"

I shook my head, unable to speak.

So, Edward was there when Daniel showed up. So he knows I wasn't lying. Then why wasn't he here, apologizing for accusing me and yelling at me?

"Did he say anything about me? About knowing you were coming?"

"No. They said that it was weird they hadn't seen me coming. Apparently one of them sees the future. But I told them that I have some weird powerblocking thing."

Hmm. So that explained it. Wonder how Edward feels now, knowing that I wasn't lying, and that his excuse was simply overrun with something as simple as the ability to block other vampires' powers.

I sat down, no longer sure if I could stand up.

"Bella?" Daniel sat down next to me.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. It's just..." Something inside of me broke, and I was suddenly telling him everything.

"I told Edward that I ran into you yesterday, and he didn't believe me. He said that there was no way there was another vampire in Forks, cause they would have known about it. And he accused me of lying and got mad because I had asked you if you were a vampire and he just didn't believe me, and he didn't come last night so I cried myself to sleep and he's not here now, apologizing for being a jerk." Stupid tears escaped my eyes.

"Shh, it's okay." Daniel pulled my closer to him, letting me rest my head against his shoulder while he stroked my hair. It was comforting. And it is what Edward should be doing now.

**Edward's POV**

After Daniel left to find Bella, I asked Carlisle if I could go see her, but he said no. It aggravated me. I really needed to see her and apologize. But I was made to stay and give my opinion on Daniel joining our coven. I tried to tell Carlisle I didn't care, but I was met with a disapproving glare. So I said, "The more, the merrier," and left to go find Bella.

When I arrived at her house, there was a new car in the driveway. So, Daniel found her.

I crept in through her room window quietly and waited at the top of the stairs. I could see her and Daniel. He was holding her, stroking her hair.

I was outraged.

How could that happen? He was holding her as I do, and she was allowing it! What was going on here?

Had my absence last night really had that much effect on her? Did she stop loving me simply because I chose not to return while I was still mad? It had been for her own good.

No, Bella! Love me! I wanted to shout, but I recalled my promise, to leave if she ever stopped loving me, and not try to force her to love me.

So did that mean she doesn't love me anymore?

The thought was too much to bear. I crept back outside, returning to my car. I drove away as quickly and quietly as possible, waiting as long as I could before the despair overcame me and I screamed. I screamed at the thought of losing her again. I screamed at myself, for being angry with her yesterday. I screamed until I sobbed. How could she not love me anymore?

**Wow. That was a long chapter. I just didn't know when to stop. lol. Oh, and I realise I might be scaring some of you right now... no Bella doesn't not love Edward. He misinterpreted the hug from Daniel. He couldn't tell the Bella was crying, so he thought it was romantic and not soothing. Understand?**

**Anywayyyyyyy... wow. I cannot believe I wrote a long chapter. and so many POVs. lol. sorry if it was confusing. PLEASE REVIEW! Edward shall give you a kiss if you do!**


	6. Conversation

**Yeah. Four chapters yesterday, and two today... So far! lol ok, I don't own Twilight. REVIEW**

**Bella's POV**

I didn't know how long I was crying, but I hoped it wasn't too long.

I dried my eyes and looked up at Daniel.

"You okay?" His voice was filled with concern.

"Yeah. Thanks. Sorry about that."

"No problem." He grinned.

"The first time I met you, you almost ran me over. The second time, you let me hold you in my arms. I can see we'll get along great."

I stared at him. He smiled and winked, an indication that he was playing. I laughed.

I returned to the clothes I was folding. He followed.

"So, what's your story? How did you find out about the Cullens?"

"Well, I guessed. But I had some help. A family friend told me some old superstitions, and I guess they turned out to be true." I shrugged, my explanation brief.

"I see. And the Cullens were okay that you knew about them?"

Ugh. I didn't want to go there.

"Kind of. At first, they didn't really like it, but Edward was my boyfriend so they kinda had to deal with it."

I didn't know why I didn't like telling him that Edward was my boyfriend. I'm sure it was obvious from my breakdown, but I didn't want to acknowledge it out loud around Daniel, and I had no clue why that was. It kind of scared me.

But he didn't say anything about it, he just helped me fold clothes. Good thing it was mostly Charlie's stuff, and none of my underwear. That would have been embarrassing.

As we folded, we talked. He told me his story of how he became a vampire, and asked me about his chances of being accepted into the Cullens' coven. I told him that since he was already a vegetarian, I coukdn't see why they'd refuse. He grinned at me.

I was growing rather accustomed to his grin. It lit up his whole face in a childlike way, sort of reminding me of Jacob, but not really. As we talked, I wondered if it was smart to like him. If the Cullens didn't accept him, then he'd probably leave, and I'd lose a friend. Or, I could make the mistake of being too friendly and earn an admirer. Either way, I didn't like the outcome.

**Alice's POV**

Just as we were about to go look for him, Edward stormed into the house. He stomped his way upstairs and I heard him slam his door.

"Gentle, Edward!" Esme called. Jasper looked at me.

"He's angry, but I feel an underlying depression."

I raced upstairs to his room and knocked on the door.

"Edward?"

"Go away, Alice." I heard things being thrown and slammed around.

"Edward, breaking things isn't going to help."

"I'm not." His voice was gruff as he threw the door open. There was a suitcase in his hand. He shoved past me.

"Edward! Where are you going?" I followed him.

"Carlisle needs you to go find Daniel and tell him that we've decided to accept him, and bring him back here so we can explain some stuff."

He had reached the front door. He spun around quickly and took a step closer to me, his height intimidating as he hovered over me.

"I'm not going. Tell him to find someone else." His words were like a yell, but without excessive volume. He stormed out the door.

"Edward! Wait," I called. But he didn't turn around. His shoved his stuff into his car and zoomed off. I stood there dumbfounded until I felt a presence at my side and a wave of calm washed over me. I turned around into Jasper's embrace.

"What is wrong with him?"

"We'll find out soon enough," he promised in a soothing voice.

Carlisle had heard the whole thing and asked me to go find Daniel and bring him back to the house.

I nodded, walked out the front door, and stepped into my Porsche. I would try Bella's house.

**Bella's POV**

Daniel and I were still talking when Charlie came home. He walked in and stopped in his tracks when he saw Daniel.

"Bella? Who is this?"

"Dad, this is Daniel. He's a friend of the Cullens."

"Oh, welcome, Daniel. Staying long?"

"I'm not sure, sir. Depends on how long the Cullens want me." He laughed.

Charlie smiled.

"Where's Edward?" Charlie's growled at his name.

"I don't know, Dad. Probably at his house." My tone hinted at my irritation.

We heard a knock on the door. Alice walked in.

"Alice," Charlie was surprised to see her.

"Hello, Charlie. Hi, Bella. Daniel, I thought I might find you here."

"Yes."

"Well, come on. Carlisle is waiting for you. Bella, you can come if you like."

"No, that's okay. I have homework to do." I smiled at Daniel. The Cullens were letting him in.

"Okay," Alice said. Daniel smiled at me warily before leaving. I winked at him, trying to convey assurance that he was accepted.

They left and I went upstairs to do my homework, wondering why Edward had not come yet.

**Meh. It was an okay chapter... what does meh mean anyway?**

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	7. Acceptance and Desperation

**Chapter 7... so that makes 3 today. and I'm about to write another one. so four yesterday and four today,. you know you love me. Prove it by REVIEWing!! ps I don't own Twilight. Just Daniel**

**Alice's POV**

I brought Daniel back to our house and let Carlisle explain our rules. Daniel understood and accepted.

"Welcome to our family." I hugged him.

He noticed an absence.

"Where's Edward?"

I looked at Carlisle.

"He, uh, left."

Daniel raised his eyebrow.

"Left? Why? Where?"

"We don't know. He just came storming in and packed his things and left. He was quite mad."

Annoyance was engraved on Daniel's face. He fidgeted.

"What? What do you know?" I demanded.

"What? Nothing. I'm just angry at him."

"Why?"

"Why? Why?! Why indeed? Did he ever stop to think about it? About her? How cruel he was being? I'm not sure if I want to be a part of this family if you're all as careless as he is." His eyes narrowed and he folded his arms across his chest.

"Whoa, slow down!" I got in his face and gave him a glare.

"Do not insult my family. Now explain what you mean."

He sighed, exasperated.

"Bella. He angered Bella and left her crying, and now he is leaving. Did he stop to think what kind of consequences that might have on her?" Daniel was clearly still mad at Edward, but he was being a little overprotective of Bella. That was Edward's job.

"You realize we have no clue what you're talking about."

"You know how Bella ran into me yesterday? Yeah, well she told Edward and he didn't believe her and they had a fight and she cried herself to sleep, and she told me all that when I came over today and she cried some more because he wasn't there with her, apologizing. She obviously loves this guy and yet he has no concern for her feelings whatsoever."

"Daniel," I warned. He better not be talking about my brother like that.

"He cares for Bella more than you'll ever know. He would never hurt her like that on purpose. There must be something else going on, something we don't know. He promised he would never leave her. Unless she wanted him to." I gasped and continued speaking, thinking out loud.

"That must be it! He thinks she doesn't love him anymore! Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no, no, no! Daniel! Did she say anything that implied not loving him anymore?"

"No. She said he was her boyfriend. It really broke her heart that he thought she was lying, but angry at him for not believeing her any not apologizing when he found out she was telling the truth."

"Well, something must have happened that would lead Edward to believe she didn't love him anymore." I whipped out my phone to call him. There was no answer. I left a voicemail.

"Edward. It's Alice. This is important. Call me back. Immediately." I snapped the phone closed.

"Alice? I don't think we should tell Bella that he left. She's in too much pain already."

I realized Daniel was right.

"Yes. But how can we keep this from her?"

"Just don't tell her, and hope she doesn't ask."

Right. Of course.

Edward, when you get back, I am going to yell at you until your ears bleed! Which could take awhile, seeing as you don't have blood.

Oh, he will pay for hurting Bella like this.

**OK, so review!**


	8. Tears

**Here we have it! Eight chapters in two days!! Wow... i am amazed at myself.**

**I don't own Twilight. REVIEW**

**Bella's POV**

The day dragged on slowly. I hoped Edward would come and apologize, but I realized that he would probably be too embarrassed to apologize right away. He knows that she should have believed me. Edward, just come. I don't care if you don't apologize. I just want you.

Nighttime approached, and I wondered if I should go over to his house and see him. But if he wasn't ready to come see me, then he probably didn't want me to come see him. But why didn't he come right away? He should know that I wouldn't really be mad at him. For long, anyway. My anger tends to cease when I look into those beautiful golden eyes of his.

I went through my bedtime routine mechanically, yet quickly, hoping to see him laying across my bed when I came back from my shower.

He wasn't there.

Depression threatened to seize me, but I heard the TV downstairs and told myself he wouldn't come until Charlie was asleep.

I made sure my window was wide open before getting into bed and pulling my quilt over my head.

Around 10:30, Charlie came in to check on me. Twenty minutes later, I heard him snoring. I looked at the window in anticipation.

A light breeze wafted in, chilling me. I sunk closer into the quilt and wrapped my arms around my knees for warmth.

Eventually, I got tired. As my eyelids started drooping, I checked the clock. After midnight. Again. And he still wasn't here. Maybe he was never coming back.

The thought brought fresh tears to my eyes. I hadn't known I still had tears. I thought they were all out for at least a month. That's how much I had been crying.

But the loneliness sunk in and I sobbed. Same as last night. Maybe this will be my new routine, crying myself to sleep every night.

Finally, I sunk into unconsciousness, to a dreamless sleep.

Later, I awoke slightly when I felt a pair of cold arms wrap around me.

"Sleep, Bella." A musical voice whispered in my ear. It wasn't his, but it was comforting. I fell back asleep as quickly as I had woken up.

**Daniel's POV**

After a day of all the Cullens trying desperately to call Edward and failing miserably, they eventually retreated to their rooms. I went to mine and unpacked my clothes. I could not stop thinking about Bella and Edward. Bella, the beautiful human who knew of our existence. Edward, her stupid boyfriend who left her broken and sobbing. She deserved better. Much, much better. Alice insisted that he cared about her, but if he really cared, why would he accuse her of lying and leave her? I would never do that to someone I cared about. I would never do that to Bella.

Did I care about Bella? Was I falling in love with a human? A human who had already fallen in love?

No, I couldn't be. We were friends. And I'd always cared about others' feelings a great deal. That was all.

As the clock approached midnight, I could take it no longer. I had to see her. I had to see if he came back. Had to see if she was alright.

I left the house and headed to Bella's. I listened carefully for any signs of her. I heard a faint sobbing coming through an open window. I climbed the tree below the window and peered in. Bella was asleep on her bed, curled into a ball, sobbing. She was alone.

My heart broke for her, and I pushed the anger I felt against Edward aside.

She needed someone to comfort her.

I climbed in her window quietly, so as not to wake her. I hesitated at her bed, gazing at her face. She was asleep, but she was still crying.

At that moment, I wanted nothing more than to soothe her, and make sure she never felt this way again.

Before I knew what I was doing, I was lying next to her, putting my arms around her. She stirred slightly and buried her face in my chest.

"Sleep, Bella," I whispered in her ear.

**Hmm. This one was shorter. But I hope you liked! REVIEW!!**


	9. Stealing Her Heart, Slowly But Surely

**yay! And I was suffering writers block too. I just let it flow. ;) **

**I don't own Twilight. REVIEW**

**Daniel's POV**

I stayed with Bella throughout the night. When it started nearing morning, I wondered if I should stay, or if would freak her out. I was still wrestling with my thoughts when she stirred. I stiffened, not sure if she was waking up or not. I considered escaping out of her window really quick, but didn't think it was a good idea.

Her head moved closer to my chest and suddenly jerked up to look at me.

"Daniel?"

I loosened my grip on her.

"Hello," I said warily. Would she be mad that I was here?

She squinted at the clock.

"What are you doing here?"

Oh no. Was she angry?

"I, uh. Your window was open and I heard you sobbing, and I knew you were asleep, so I couldn't really comfort you, but I didn't want you to be alone." I think my nervousness caused my explanation to sound stupider than it was.

"Oh. That's sweet, Daniel. Thanks." She snuggled into my arms and sighed.

"Bella?"

She moved away slightly.

"Yeah?"

"Um, nothing." How could I tell her that her closeness was making me uncomfortable? I loved it. But that was why it was uncomfortable. I didn't want to love it. She already had a boyfriend. I could feel my resentment towards Edward growing.

She sighed.

"What?"

"Oh, uh, nothing. It's just, you're so much like him. I mean, cold and all that. It's really comforting."

"Oh." Why could I not think of anything intelligent to say?

She inhaled suddenly.

"He never came, did he?"

Oh, crap. That's right. I can't tell her he's gone.

My silence seemed to be an answer to her.

"He never came back. I can't believe him. Is it really that hard to apologize?" I winced.

She noticed.

"Daniel?"

Crap. "Yes, Bella?"

"What happened?"

"What do you mean what happened?" I tried to act innocent.

"I mean, why isn't he here? You seem to know." She pulled back to look at my face, searching for an answer. How could I resist those eyes? They begged me to tell her everything. But at the same time, I knew she didn't want to hear the truth. But the way she was looking at me... I was getting lost in her eyes. What did she just ask me?

"Er, what?"

"What happened?" She was getting impatient now.

"Uh, we don't know. He kind of stormed off, and we're trying to find him."

Her eyes widened.

"He left?!" She shrieked.

Oops.

"Umm..."

"I can't believe it!" She pushed me away, jumped off her bed and started to pace.

"He said he would never do that again! Unless he didn't leave permanently. I couldn't have made him that mad that he had to leave for awhile, could I? And he left without apologizing first. What? Was he even thinking about my feelings? He promised that we would never leave! Why is he doing this to me?" Her anger turned into sadness as she broke down on the last two sentences, sobbing. She had slumped down on the floor ro cry. I went over to her and picked her up, returning to her bed and held her on my lap as she continued to cry.

This was the third time that I held her and comforted her while she cried. I hoped this would be the last time, for I hated seeing her in pain, but I also hoped it wouldn't be the last time I held her.

Stop that, Daniel! She doesn't like you. She just got her heart broken. Hmm, maybe I could fix it...? No! Stop thinking!

She stopped sobbing and wiped her tears. She turned her body slightly, facing me now. Her face was inches from mine, her beautiful eyes looking into mine. I swear, if my heart was still beating, it would have stopped then.

"I'm sorry, Daniel."

"For what?" I asked softly.

She laughed. "I'm always crying whenever I'm around you. Well, when I'm not trying to run you over, anyway," she grinned.

I tucked a stand of hair behind her ear.

"It's okay. I understand. He's hurt you very much. You deserve better, Bella." I couldn't help but say that last sentence, though I knew it wouldn't go over well.

She hummed.

"He used to say that. I always thought I didn't deserve him, but he insisted I deserved better. Maybe he was right. Maybe he knew he would leave me one day. Even though he promised. Maybe I'll be better off without him. I never thought I'd say that, but I also never thought I'd have to."

I could hear the anger behind her sadness. Poor Bella.

"Daniel?" Her brown eyes looked into mine softly.

"Yes?"

"Thank you. For comforting me. And stuff." Her eyes were dark with gratitude. They were lovely.

She shifted toward me a little more and wrapped her arms around the back of my neck. My arms were around her waist.

She leaned in towards my face.

"You're so nice," she murmured before her lips met mine.

Oh my gosh. Bella just kissed me. Bella was kissing me. My heart leapt and exploded.

I kissed her back, holding her closer.

Her hands mussed up my hair as she struggled to grab me tighter. I sighed, feeling dizzy. Pretty soon, I wasn't breathing, which was okay, since I didn't need to. But neither was she, and she needed to.

I pulled away.

"Bella?"

She took a breath.

"Sorry." She kissed me again.

I couldn't believe it. The most beautiful girl I had met in my entire life ws kissing me. I never wanted this moment to end.

**Hmm, and here I thought I was never going to do much in Daniel's POV... hmm. Bella's POV is the easiest to write, I think. But this needed to be a Daniel chapter. lol**

**Ok, so no hate mail! :P you know you love me**

**REVIEW**


	10. Questions

**This is the sixth chapter today. wow. I cant believe it. I still don't own twilight, by the way. REVIEW**

**Edward's POV**

Maybe I shouldn't have stormed out like that, yelling at Alice. It was rude.

But how could I fake being happy?

Bella, my love, my reason for living loved someone else. I promised her I would leave if that ever happened, but only if that happened. And the day finally came. She loved someone else. Of course, I had never though it would be another vampire.

Worst part is, she told me about meeting him, but she never mentioned falling in love with him. Was she just going to string me along? Like she had done to Jacob?

Did I really want to give my heart to someone like that?

Probably not.

But it didn't matter. My heart, what was left of it, belonged to her. It had from the moment I met her. And it always will.

Maybe I should have asked her if she was in love with him before leaving, in case she still loved me. But how could that be? Why would she be snuggled into his embrace is she didn't love him?

She wouldn't be.

So she loved him. She loved that filthy newcomer.

And how did I know that he wasn't just faking being a vegetarian? Maybe he was killing her now.

The thought almost made me turn back, but I had been traveling all night and I had no clue where I was, much less where I was going. Without her, life would be meaningless. I should just go to the Volturi now.

No. What if I misread the situation? I groaned. The fact that both of their minds were blanks really didn't help my case.

I knew it was foolish, holding on to one last shred of hope that she loved me. But that would be the only way I could live.

Why hadn't I gone against Carlisle's wishes and just apologized to her as soon as I knew the truth? Maybe then I could have convinced her not to unlove me. But I said I wouldn't try to force her to love me. And maybe she never loved me in the first place.

Was it my fault? Did she only start loving Daniel because I had angered her? Why didn't I believe her?

Why am I asking myself these stupid questions I'll never know the answer to? Why am I not on my way to Italy? Could there possibly be a reason to live without her?

No.

There wasn't. There never will be.

But there was something nagging at me. Something telling me that all hope was not lost. Telling me not to give up.

Why? Why should I listen? If she doesn't love me, I can't make her. I told her I wouldn't try. And I'll never love anyone else. Why am I still alive?

Will I ever stop asking questions? I sound crazy. Maybe I am crazy. Maybe I'm only imagining it. Maybe she doesn't love Daniel. Or maybe she does, and she never loved me?

I only wish I knew what was in her head.

**Eh, it's short. But i felt that Edward needed another chapter, so yeah. and I know that i will be introducing another character, but i dont know when or how. gahh stupid brain!!**

**REVIEW!!**


	11. Life Without Him

**This is a chapter. wow. I DONT OWN TWILIGHT**

**REVIEW!!**

**Bella's POV**

Over the course of a few weeks, Daniel and I grew closer. We talked and went out on dates. Pretty soon, we both knew each others' life stories. The rest of the Cullens seemed to be disappoined that I was no longer with Edward, but that was his fault for leaving me. He promised he never would, but I guess some promises are meant to be broken. Alice and Esme were really the only supportive ones, but that was to be expected. Rosalie and Jasper pretty much gave Daniel the cold shoulder, but that was okay since he barely went to the Cullens' house anyway. Not having Edward there wasn't as bad at the first time. Probably because I had Daniel, and this time I was angry at him for leaving. I still cried sometimes at night, but Daniel was there to hold me and reassure me that Edward was just being a jerk. I suppose believing Daniel when he said he would never leave me wasn't the smartest thing to do, but I couldn't turn completely cynical and pessimistic, could I?

There was a part of me that missed Edward, but I pushed it away. I wouldn't have a repeat of Jacob. Edward left me. He doesn't belong in my heart anymore, and I will not feel guilty for loving him and Daniel at the same time. I needed to pick one guy and forget about the other.

Daniel and I spent pretty much all of our free time together. Charlie liked Daniel better than he liked Edward, and I bet he was glad that Daniel was there when Edward left this time so he wouldn't have to se me in pain like that again.

After my shower, I ran back to my room and climbed into Daniel's lap.

"I missed you," he murmured softly into my hair.

"I missed you, too." I wrapped my arms around his neck. He tightened his grip on my waist, pulling me closer. I started playing with his hair, messing it up, feeling it run through my fingers.

He sighed.

"You are an incredibly amazing girl, Bella Swan." I grinned and kissed him. His hands moved to my back, bringing me closer to him. I locked my arms around his neck, shoving his face into mine. His cold lips moved with mine, kissing me more passionately than Edward ever had. I sighed as the room started to spin. He carefully grabbed my shoulders, pushing me away. I breathed.

I took a look at his face, muffling a laugh. He looked as dazed as I was, and his hair was sticking up in the back.

He smiled at me and carried me over to my bed where he sat me down and pulled the quilt over me before laying on top of the quilt beside me. He lay his head inches away from mine. I grabbed him and scooted closer, resting my head against his cold stone chest. He traced circles in my back with his fingers.

"Sleep, my Bella." His breath tickle my face. I breathed in the scent as my eyes began to close.

Life was beautiful.

**shoter than i thought... sorry**

**Meh. I have my good plot planned now, but I need to wait a month before posting it... so I have no clue what to do then... the story won't really start until I add that chapter, so these will probably be fillers and might suck. :( and i really messed up. I added some info from after Eclipse, but I mentioned that Bella had homework... she was graduated in Eclipse... oh dang. well, i might cancel out school completely, or not. idk. i dont feel like writing about school, but what else would she do all day long? lol. REVIEW**


	12. Blood

**I don't own Twilight. REVIEW**

**Bella's POV**

This morning, when I woke up, I found a note on my pillow.

_Going hunting with the Cullens. I'll be back as soon as I can. I miss you already. Love, Daniel._

I sighed. Today would be boring without Daniel. But, I had stuff to do, so I wouldn't let his absence weigh me down. I rushed through the shower and got dressed. After breakfast, I checked the kitchen, making a list of the food we needed. Once that was finished, I grabbed the food money and headed out the door.

The rain was light and misty today. Not bad, but still not sunny.

At the grocery store, I found what I needed quickly, as usual. The grocery store was practically empty today, so there was no line of customers in front of me at the checkout. I sighed as I remembered the last time I was at the grocery store, when I ran into Daniel. It seemed like a lifetime away.

This time, I pushed the cart out to my truck and unloaded the bags. Why hadn't I thought of that last time? Instead of bearing myself down with my bags?

Oh well, if I hadn't, I might've never met Daniel. I shuddered at the thought, but on the way home, I contemplated how my life would have been different had I not met Daniel that day.

I would have returned home to Edward, and we would still be together now. Daniel may or may not have found the Cullens, Edward and I never would have fought, he wouldn't be gone now. Did I like that outcome better?

I was still struggling with trying to find the answer to that question when I returned home.

I unloaded the bags and started putting the food away when I heard a noise.

Before I could turn around to see what it was, cold arms wrapped around me. I jumped in surprise, then sighed as I turned and snuggled into Daniel's embrace, wrapping my arms around him. He kissed the top of my head.

"I missed you."

I smiled.

"Your note mentioned that."

"Yes, but I wanted to tell you myself. I missed you."

"I missed you too."

He kissed me softly.

"I love you." My heart melted as he said the words. I knew he did, but hearing it never got old.

"I love you too." I reached up, putting my arms around his neck and pulled him closer. He bent down, allowing me to kiss him while he hoisted me up closer to him. I wrapped my legs around him so I wouldn't fall, but I also knew he wouldn't allow me to fall. His strong yet gentle hands were on my back, securing me. I tangled my fingers into his hair in my attempt to glue his lips to mine. Still holding me tightly, he staggered back a step.

"Bella, you're making me lightheaded." He had removed his lips from mine just enough to talk.

"Sorry," I mumbled and closed the distance between our mouths, reminding myself to breathe.

We were still in the same position, him holding me and me molding myself to him so as not to fall, when he carried me upstairs.

He sat down in the rocking chair, still holding me.

Eventually, I had to pull away to breathe.

Daniel looked just as breathless as I was.

He grinned. I smiled back, trying to breathe evenly enough to kiss him again.

He tilted his head slightly and leaned into me. He sniffed and pulled back, looking at me in the eye.

"You smell good, Bella."

I looked at him, confused. As a vampire, surely he had noticed the smell of my blood before now?

He noticed that I looked confused.

"You smell like strawberries."

Hmm. Edward had said I had a floral scent.

"Umm, I use a strawberry shampoo," I offered.

He shoved his face into my hair in inhaled.

"Ahh. Strawberries."

"What?" I put my hands on his fave and pushed him back, staring into his face.

"What, Bella? Did I do something wrong? Did you not want to smell good?" He smiled teasingly.

"No, it's just... You don't smell my blood?"

His lips twitched.

"I do. It's just not as potent to me as it seems to be for other vampires."

"What do you mean?"

He sighed.

"I don't know how to explain it. Blood doesn't attract me as much as it does attracts the others. I know I need it, but I don't like it."

"Huh?" A vampire that didn't like blood?

"I think it has something to do with my human life. Blood made me queasy. When I was changed, I craved it as an instinct, but I didn't want to drink it. So the smell doesn't faze me as much. That's why it's so easy for me to drink animals, instead of humans. Their scent isn't that different, and although it is natural for me to crave a humans' blood, it doesn't pose much of a difference to animal blood. It's just blood. I don't necessarily need it to stay alive, but my instinct is to drink it."

"Oh." It was very confusing to me, but I sort of understood. He didn't crave it as himself, just as what he is, and he would go without it if he could. I think that's what he was saying.

"I know it's very confusing, Bella. I don't expect you to understand. I barely do myself."

"I think I know what you mean." I smiled.

He smiled back and held me closer.

I rested my head against his chest and sighed. He kissed my head again, inhaling the scent of my shampoo.

Funny. He and Edward both thought I smelled good. In different ways, but still. There was always _somebody _sniffing me. I almost laughed. Instead, I snuggled into him contentedly.

**Mm. Not much of an ending. But whatever. And I know, I always say 'snuggle' idk why. lol.**

**I just thought I'd get Danie's dislike for blood out of the way. My great plot idea is ... um... great...**

**But it has to wait until May. So I may not update a lot. Sorry. REVIEW**


	13. Thoughts

**Sorry for not updating for awhile. I had to take a break and get some ideas. My main plot can't come until May. So yeah, I didn't want to do cheesy filler chapters. Just normal ones. lol.**

**I hope you like it. And sorry if my updates don't come very fast. But hey, I did 11 chapters in two days. I deserve a break. lol.**

**Oh, and don't forget to review... if you want another chapter that is. and then go back and review the chapters you didn't review, haha lol**

**Anywayyyyy my AN is now longer than the chapter.**

**I don't own Twilight. I never did and probably never will so stop asking! Gosh! lol... don't forget to REVIEW!!**

**Daniel's POV**

Bella didn't seem to be creeped out by my lack of bloodlust. Of course, it was probably a relief for her, not having to worry about her boyfriend wanting to kill her. Or maybe she was used to it. Every day, I find myself wishing that I knew how I compared to Edward in her eyes.

I hope that she likes me better, but I don't know. I mean, she was with him for over a year. I don't see how she ever loved him, the way he treated her. He accused her of lying and left, despite his promise to never leave her. I just don't understand how he could say he loved her and then do that. I guess it's a good thing he left, because if he stuck around after acting like that, I don't know if I could control myself.

He's such a jerk. How could he hurt my Bella like that?

Breathe, I told myself. He's gone now. And she wasn't my Bella then, when he mistreated her like that. No, she became mine after he did that.

Immediately after. Am I just a rebound? Does she only love me because she doesn't want to love him anymore? Does she love me at all?

I hated thinking like that, but I had no clue what she felt. So of course I had doubts.

But all my doubts seemed to be proven wrong whenever she looked into my eyes or kissed me.

Oh man, when she looks into my eyes, it's like nothing exists but her. Nothing. The world, the anger I feel for Edward, nothing. It's all gone. All I see is her and her wonderful brown eyes. It's a good thing I don't need to breathe, since I stop whenever she looks at me. I'd be dead by now if I needed to breathe. And when she kisses me, it's even worse. If she feels like I do when we kiss, it's a wonder she's still alive.

I really hope she never felt this way about Edward.

**Alice's POV**

It had been awhile since Edward left. A month, maybe. I don't know about Bella, but the rest of us missed him. Except Daniel, of course.

And no one understands why Bella just switched vampire boyfriends like that. Rosalie is kind of mad at her. I think Esme, Carlisle, and I are the only ones who are supportive. We miss seeing Edward and Bella together, Esme especially. But if it's what Bella wants, we won't hate her for it.

I just don't understand. It seems like he left because she and Daniel were together, but she wouldn't be with him while she still had Edward. She loved him that much.

Or so I thought. He was always saying he cared more for her than she cared for him, but I thought he was just saying that because he didn't think she could love him that much.

Maybe she didn't.

Oh, I'm not saying anything bad about Bella. She probably thought she cared that much, but then proved even herself wrong. I don't know. It could be something I'm not seeing, and not just in a premonition way.

It really annoys me how I can't see Daniel's future or any future that relates to Daniel. That could be why I can't see Edward, because he's not over Bella choosing Daniel over him.

It's really worrying me that I can't see Edward. But I don't honestly think he would go to the Volturi. Or would he?

I just don't know! And what's the pont in having premonition if it doesn't always work?!

Ugh. It's so confusing!

And I miss Edward. Maybe I should try to follow him, wherever he went, just to make sure he's safe. But then I'd miss the rest of my family too much.

I guess he'll return when he's ready.

**Mmmm. Kinda short. But not too short. I hope. lol Let me know what you think! By sending in a REVIEW!! I think I'll set a goal of 10 reviews for this chapter. Think you can handle it? lol, I don't even know if I have 10 readers... Guess I'll know soon enough, right guys? :P**

**xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox**

**Whee, that was fun!**


	14. Decision

**Sorry for the delay! i needed to wait awile to get the back story done, because i can't start the actual story until may. so there's this, and then another chapter i never expected would need to be written until i wrote the end of this one... then probably some fillers, unfortunately. then may 18th... grr i really need to get my brain working!**

**please review. I need 10 reviews if you want another chapter! :D yes i am evil :P**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, and I don't own Cafe Creme, and I don't own Newcastle Airport. and I don't own Volvo or Mitsubishi or the song 'Never Again' by Kelly Clarkson, which i refer to loosely... i think that's it. I do own some sugar packets though. from a restaurant... so maybe i don't even own them... dang.**

**Edward's POV**

Why? Why me? Why her? Why him?

Why did he come? Why didn't I believe her? Why did they have to fall in love? Why did I leave? Why did she want me to?

Endless and answerless questions ran through my mind as I drove. Tears that would never be shed formed in my eyes as I thought about her. Her. Bella. My beautiful, sweet angel. Though she wasn't mine anymore.

My mind tried to tell me it was my fault, but I told it to shut up. It wasn't my fault. It was his. Daniel's.

He just waltzed into Forks and stole my Bella. Stole her right from me. Thief.

The only thing I don't understand, why would she let him? I thought she loved me? She told me she loved me.

I guess it was just too good to be true. I had finally found my reason for living, and I thought she felt the same way about me. I guess I was wrong. The first time I left, when I left to keep myself from killing her, I should have just stayed away. Saved my dead heart the trouble of coming to life only to be broken. My heart was shattered in a million pieces, never to be put together again. I know if she loved me, my heart would mend. But she never would.

Never again.

It's like that song. Never again will she kiss me, never again will she love me.

Maybe she never did.

Oh, gosh. The thought was too much to bear. Of course she had loved me at one time, didn't she? Or had she been pretending all this time? Why? Why would she do that? And if she never loved me, why hadn't she chosen Jacob? Maybe she didn't love him either. Maybe she was just using us until her true love came along. Was Daniel her true love?

No, he couldn't be. And I needed to stop thinking like that. It hurt too much.

Maybe I should pay attention to my driving.

Where was I anyway? And how long had I been driving?

I think it was at least over night. My gas tank was almost empty. And not even almost, like a quarter tank of gas left. Nope, if I didn't find a gas station soon, I'd be completely out of gas.

That's when I remembered. I did stop driving for awhile. I realised that Alice or someone might try following me. I abandoned my beautful Volvo and hopped on a plane. Where to? I don't recall. I just took the next flight. Why can't I remember the plane ride? I know I wasn't sleeping. I don't sleep. Maybe I had been too caught up in my thoughts to notice anything. But then how did I get back in a car?

I looked around. This was not my car. It was a Volvo, but it wasn't mine. What the-- oh, right. I need gas.

I increased my speed a little bit and watched as the scenery whizzed by. There, a sign welcoming me to Seaham and a Food and Gas sign.

I pulled into the gas station and filled up the car. I walked around the car, trying to determine what car it was. It was a Volvo C30. In silver. Basically the newer version of my car, the Volvo S60. I guess the rental company was out of S60's.

I noticed that there was an old diner next to the gas sation. Cafe Creme, the sign said. Maybe I should go in and see exactly where I am and just rest. Before my thoughts overwhelm me and I have an accident. Not that a car accident would kill me. If only if I could be that lucky.

So I paid for the gas and drove over the the practically deserted diner. It looked kind of old and rundown, but definitely a hotspot for small towns. There were only four cars in the parking lot. I parked next to the fanciest car, a 2008 Mitsubishi Eclipse GT V6 in Kalapana Black. Nice.

Despite my depressed state, I still found time to adore a good car. Maybe I am going crazy. Wouldn't be the first time. At least I'm doing better than the last time I was away from her. Or maybe not, now that this time it wasn't my fault. It basically was her decision, her choice. It's what she wanted. And this time it's permanent.

Oh my gosh. I am never going to see her again.

The realisation started in my head and shook throughout my body. I could feel the dry sobs starting up again.

Wait, I told myself. Let me just get inside. Then maybe I can collapse.

I locked the car and walked through the diner door.

"Sit anywhere you like," a voice called out from behind the kitchen counter.

I looked around. Only one table was occupied. By a mother with two young kids. She looked exhausted.

I sat down at the counter.

There was only one waitress working and she appeared shortly after I sat down. She was in typical old diner uniform, a yellow dress with an apron and a general '50s look without being too timewarp-y.

"Hello. My name is Ashleigh. What can I get for you?" Because of the appearance of the diner and her uniform, I expected a Southern accent, but was met with an interesting English accent. Not quite British, but the England roots were noticeable.

"Uh, just a glass of water."

"Sure." The waitress scooted away.

The diner seemed to have a slightly calming effect on me. I was only vaguely aware of my depression; I was too interested in the diner's atmosphere and trying to figure out where I was to concentrate on missing Bella.

The sign I passed had said Seaham and the waitress had an English accent. Did I drive all the way to England without even noticing?

No, of course not. There's a sea between England and America. But then how?

Oh, yeah. The plane. I guess the flight I had taken took me to England. Probably the Newcastle airport. Guess I just drove from there. I really don't remember it. Kind of scary, too.

The waitress set down my glass of water and handed me a straw.

"Thanks." I unwrapped the straw and put it in the water. I stirred the ice around in the cup, watching it intently, yet not really seeing it.

Bella was in love with someone else. Someone who wasn't me. And it was my fault. If I had only believed her, if I hadn't made her mad. Or maybe that wouldn't have made a difference. Maybe she was in love with him from the moment she met him in that stupid grocery store.

"Aww, who is she?" A voice broke me out of my thoughts.

"Huh?" I looked up to find the voice. It was the waitress... What was her name? Ashleigh?

"The girl that broke your heart." Her eyes bore into mine, filled with concern. She wasn't even blinking, not dazed like Bella used to be. And she said I dazzled people. Guess my charm wore off with my hope. Not that I was trying to charm this Ashleigh person, but still. Bella said I charmed people without even trying. Wait, what was her question?

"Um, Bella." I can't believe how much it hurt to say her name. I had been thinking it all day long. Why was it different out loud? And why was I telling this waitress chick?

"What happened?" Ashleigh smiled at me sympathetically.

"She, uh, she loves someone else. After all those times she told me she loved me. She just... Fell in love with someone else. I knew I never deserved her. I guess it really was too good to be true." I fought to keep from sobbing again. Why? Why did she love him? Why did I believe she loved me?

"Oh, I'm sorry. That must be really hard."

"You have no idea." My voice was barely a whisper.

Suddenly, it was if I could see myself as a third party observer. All my brokenness, all my sadness, all my confusion. It was pathetic. Why was I still alive? How could I choose to live this way?

That's when the thought that's been struggling to get out of my mind came out. I would do it. I would go to the Volturi. No one could stop me this time.

I brightened slightly at the thought of it all being over soon.

"But it's okay. I'll be ok. I'll go to Italy." I half-smiled at the waitress. She would never know the hidden meaning behind me words. She would just think that I was like all those other humans, running to other countries to get rid of their problems, surrounding themselves in drugs and alcohol to numb the pain. I almost laughed at the stupidity. No, I wasn't going to numb the pain. I was going to end it.

**Whoa! Can someone say: 'longest chapter ever'?! lol. and that ending is really depressing. i had no idea i could word things like that. brilliant, i am. Brilliant! lol. and i really did my research in this chapter. lol. it took forever, too. lol. anywayyyy. remember: 10 reviews!!**

**this is sort of a back story for the main plot that shall begin to start in may. and because of the ending, i have another chapter that will need to be done before may 18th. but not now, cause i gotta drag it out so it's not like im abandoning the story. lol. Soooo don't forget to REVIEW!!**


	15. It Doesn't Hurt Like I Thought It Would

**I don't own Twilight. Sorry for the wait, I've been working on another chapter.**

**Bella's POV**

I was in the kitchen making dinner for Charlie and thinking about Daniel. I was so glad that he was here. I couldn't belive that Edward left again. But at least Daniel was here, keeping me from thinking about him too much. I know that if I did, it wouldn't have good outcomes. But I wasn't using Daniel to keep me from falling apart, was I?

No, of course not. I did love him. He was like Jacob; there when I needed him, when Edward left. How could I love three men at one time? Hopefully I wasn't turning into a slut.

I shuddered at the word. Of course I wasn't a slut. It's not like I did anything. I only loved them. I mean, I love my parents and my friends. So this wasn't any different.

The front door banged open.

"Bella?"

"In the kitchen, Dad."

He walked in, a tired look on his face as he shrugged out of his jacket and hung up his gun belt.

"Hey, Bells. Smells good."

"Thanks. How was work?"

"Same as always." He sat down.

"You look exhausted."

"I am. I'm not as young as I used to be, Bella." He smiled and I smiled back.

"Well, then I guess it's a good thing I decided to make stroganoff tonight." I turned to the stove to check on the noodles, and decided that they were ready.

"Stroganoff? Yum."

I served the dinner and sat down to eat, watching Charlie as he wolfed it down.

"What do you want?"

"What?" I was surprised by Charlie's question.

"Well, you don't like stroganoff that much, and the last time you made it, you wanted something."

He was perceptive.

"Oh, I don't want anything. I was just in a good mood today." That was almost completely true. I _was_ in a good mood, but I was also preoccupied.

"I haven't seen Edward lately." Charlie peered at me curiously. I sighed.

"Neither have I, Dad."

"Are you two fighting or something?" I could hear the hope in his voice.

"No, Dad. He left. You met Daniel, right?" Why did he think I was still with Edward or fighting with him when Daniel and I were together? Were we together? I mean, we kissed. But we were friends, mostly.

"He left you again?" Outrage touched Charlie's voice.

"Yes. I really don't want to get into it, Dad."

"You don't know why he left?"

"No. It was without warning."

"You seem to be doing better about it than... the last time." He hesitated on the last three words.

"That's because I don't think about it." I tried to keep annoyance out my voice.

He got the hint.

"Sorry," he mumbled before going to the living room to watch the game.

I sighed and cleaned up dinner. Afterwards, I headed up to my room. I pulled out my book and my iPod, hoping to distract myself. Daniel was with the Cullens. I'm not sure why. They hunted recently.

I vaguely wondered why I hadn't been invited to whatever the Cullens were doing, but I hadn't really seen them much ever since Edward left.

I closed my eyes and tried not to think about the fact that he left. Again. After he promised not to leave again. But I didn't care, right? I shouldn't care. I have Daniel now. But I still can't believe he left after he promised not to. He said he was there as long as I wanted him, and I told him I always would. Why would he suddenly think I didn't want him anymore? I had done nothing to suggest that I didn't want him. Unless he thought the little fight we had meant I didn't love him. Or maybe he realised he didn't love me.

I waited for the thought to hurt, but it didn't. I'd always thought it was weird that he loved me.

But he insisted that he did. If he loved me, why would he promise not to leave and then break that promise?

I tried to grasp the concept that maybe he had never loved me.

And that would be okay, since Daniel was here. He loved me. So, Edward didn't need to love me. Right?

I sighed and put my iPod away. It wasn't distracting me, and there was no need to waste my battery.

I gathered my stuff and went to go take a shower and get ready for bed. Daniel would be here soon.

**Short. Sorry. I knew Bella needed another chapter before my lengendary May 18th chapter, so I wrote it. Sorry for the delay, also. I've been working on said May 18th chapter. :D please review.**


	16. Thoughts, Pain, Tears, and Wishes

**Yeah, the last couple of chapters were fillers. Thanks for sticking with me though. I have the May 18th chapter written and I'm working on the one after that. So, look for a huge update on the 18th. :D This will probably be my last chapter until then, but it's needed. I think. Anyway. i don't own Twilight. Just Daniel. Please review!!**

**Bella's POV**

After my shower, I took the time to dry my hair. I wasn't sure when Daniel would be back, and I didn't want to be by myself for too long. I got ready as slowly and thoroughly as I possibly could, but then I could stall no longer. Time for bed. I sighed and went downstairs to tell Charlie I was going to bed and then I walked up to my room, hoping he had come in through my window during that time.

He hadn't.

I sighed and shoved my covers to the side. Just then, I heard a crack of thunder and the rain beat down harder. Thunderstorm. So the Cullens were playing baseball. Probably why Daniel wasn't here yet. But why wasn't I invited? Did the Cullens not like me now, now that I wasn't with Edward? No, Alice and Esme would never do that to me. And it wasn't my choice to be without Edward. It was his choice. His stupid, irresponsible choice. Why would he do that to me again? After he promised not to?

Was there some sort of pattern here? Was he going to leave every single time something didn't go his way?

No, that couldn't be it. If so, he would have left many more times than this. So why now? Why then? Why at all?

Why was it so much harder to deal with when I was alone?

I'm glad Daniel didn't have to witness this full force of pain, but why was it here at all then? I'm happy around Daniel. If not for him, I might be zombie-like, just like last time.

Even so, it was much easier this time around. Oh, I'm not saying that Edward's abandonment doesn't hurt. It does. That's why my arm is currently wrapped around my torso, keeping my heart from completely falling apart.

But I could barely cope at all last time. And now it's as if I just switched to someone else when he left. Like, no big deal, I have other friends.

Was I really that type of person?

And could I really force myself to believe that Daniel was just a friend?

But that's all he was, right? I mean, he's unnaturally beautiful, he's a vampire, but... Did I love him?

I definitely liked him. He was easy to talk to, and he comforted me when I needed it. And he wasn't so careful about being around me, since he had no thirst for my blood. And I could tell he truly liked me.Why else would he stop breathing when we kissed? Just like I stopped breathing when Edward kissed me. But did that mean that Daniel felt the same way for me as I did for Edward?

I really hoped not. That wouldn't be fair to Daniel. I really, really liked him. But I just don't think I love him. Not like Edward.

Does this mean that I'm using Daniel? I mean, I know I would have a much harder time without him here. So, does the fact that I want him here mean I'm using him to keep from falling apart? Or is that what friends do? Even though I can hardly call us 'friends.'

Friends wouldn't feel this way about each other. So he was kind of like my boyfriend.

Is it wrong to have a boyfriend when I'm clearly still in love with Edward?

I don't think about him much when Daniel's around. Mostly because he's too fun, I forget everything else. But that doesn't mean I've forgotten Edward completely. No, I could never do that.

Especially not with this huge hole in my chest as a reminder. Funny how it only hurts when I'm by myself. Or when I think about him.

Why would he do this to me again? He said he cared about me. If he really cared, why would he leave again? Why?

Suddenly, the questions became too much. The hole tore at me like fire. I tried to keep from gasping, but the ache in my lungs was making it very hard to breathe.

I lay in my bed with my blanket over me, squeezing my eyes shut and trying to overcome the pain in my heart. I just needed to stop thinking about him.

Focus on the thunderstorm, Bella. Minutes after it's over, Daniel will be here and it will be alright. Everything will be ok again. As long as he's here. Because Edward wasn't.

I sucked in my breath suddenly as the meaning behind that thought hit me full force.

Tears escaped my eyes as I tried to distract my mind and keep my chest from falling apart.

Why was this so hard?

**Daniel's POV**

As the thunderstorm started clearing, we finished up our game. Me, Alice, and Carlisle had beat Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie. But they called for a rematch, even though Esme said we won fair and square. Alice said it would storm again later this week, so we decided we would play again then.

It was fun playing baseball with the Cullens. I'd never belonged to a coven before, never been able to enjoy full company. It was nice. A little weird and different, but nice.

"Hey, Daniel. Bring Bella next time. She might want to watch us again. She was fascinated the last time. And I miss her." Alice pouted.

I laughed. "Hey, I said we should invite her, but you said she wouldn't have wanted to come."

"Oh, whatever. Just ask her next time." I nodded and we parted ways. Everyone else had taken their cars, but I had decided to run the entire way.

I pulled out my cellphone and checked the time. It was after midnight. I hoped Bella wasn't waiting up for me.

I mentally cursed myself as I started running through the forest towards her house. I hadn't meant to be away this long.

Minutes later, I was nearing Bella's house. Once there, I climbed up the tree and quietly went in through her open window.

That was when I saw her. Laying down on her bed, arms wrapped around her stomach, crying.

My heart instantly broke.

I walked over to her bed wrapped my arm around her, moving her so that I could lay next to her. I placed the blanket over us and cradled her in my arms.

Her crying slowed down as I stroked her hair and spoke softly and gently, reassuring her.

Soon, her crying stopped and she looked up at me.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't want you to see me cry. You've had enough of that."

"Bella, if you need to cry, I'll let you cry. I'll hold you until you feel better. I only wish there was nothing to make you cry. I don't like seeing you hurt or upset." I tried to make my tone soothing and convincing, hoping my absence wasn't the reason she had been crying.

"I know," she whispered. Her voice was laden with tears.

"Bella, honey, tell me what's wrong."

"I can't." Her voice broke as more tears flowed out. I felt my heart break again.

"Bella, you know you can tell me." I pressed my fingers to her face gently. "But if you don't want to tell me, I won't make you. I just hope you're not crying because I was with the Cullens all day, without you."

"No, no. It's not your fault." She reached up to my face and stroked my cheek.

"You are the reason I'm not like this all the time. If not for you, I would fall apart. Completely." Her tears were gone, and as she spoke, she looked into my eyes. I could see the truth of her words.

"Is it because of him?" Her eyes hardened slightly and got sad before she looked away.

"Yes." Her voice was barely audible, even to my great vampire hearing.

She looked back up at me, her face almost emotionless, except for a hint of fear and sadness in her eyes.

"I still love him, Daniel." She looked into my eyes and I could see the reason for her fear. She didn't want to hurt my feelings or push me away.

I tightened my arms around her.

"I know, honey. It's okay." She sighed and laid her head against my chest.

Was it okay? I didn't think she would stop loving him just because he was a jerk, but I had hoped. She said she loved me, too. Was I just being used? To keep her from falling apart?

No, Bella wouldn't do that.

But I realised, if she was using me to keep from falling apart, I didn't care. As long as she needed me, I wouldn't care why. I wished she would forget about him, but I also knew that was something that wouldn't be easy.

Then I realised something else, something that I didn't want to accept. If he came back, she would go back to him. Without a doubt, she would.

Was I okay with that?

I loved her and wanted to be with her for the rest of my life, but I wanted her to be happy too.

So if he came back, I would have to let her go back to him and not let her know how much it hurt me. And I would probably have to leave the Cullens, too. I couldn't bear to see her with him everyday.

I closed my eyes and told myself to think of other things. Hopefully, that would never happen.

**:) Was that a good place to end? I'm not sure, but that's really all that needed to be said. So yeah. Please review!**


	17. His Final Destination

**Yay! It's finally here! Hope you like this chapter as much as I do sometimes. lol. and in case you don't know WHY i had to wait to update until May 18th, this is why:**

**May 18th is Ashleigh Obsessed.with.writing's 16TH BIRTHDAY!! oooooooooooooo yea! so this is her birthday chapter, in which she is a character. which is why I had to wait for her birthday. lol. she also wrote a birthday chapter for me in her story, Separate From Myself. so yes. Wish happy birthday to Ashleigh and don't forget to review!!**

**I don't own Twilight. **

**Edward's POV**

Decision made, I left the diner and hopped into the rental car and headed to the airport. As I drove, I tried to keep my mind off Bella. It only made me sad, and frustrated that this car wouldn't go any faster. I tried to occupy my mind with a replay of the diner. That black Eclipse was really cool. I wonder whose car it was? Probably not the exhausted mother's. Maybe the waitress, Ashleigh's? But why would someone with a nice car work in a run-down place? And when I mentioned Italy, did it seem like she froze?

Probably just my imagination. I haven't been seeing things too clearly with my mind distracted like this. Heck, I got on a plane without really noticing. Why would she do this to me? Why?

And why would I let myself fall in love with her? I knew it would only end badly. But I never thought it would end like this. I thought it would end with me accidentally killing her. Not that I'd rather that. But maybe then my heart wouldn't be so shattered.

No, of course I wouldn't rather have killed Bella. But if I had, if that was why we weren't together now, then I would deserve this pain. Maybe I deserve this pain anyway, for allowing myself to get close to her when I knew it might not turn out. But why? Why did she have to fall in love with someone else? Why did I allow myself to be close to her? Why does the rejection of a simple human hurt so much? And when will the pain end?

At least I know the answer to that question. This pain will end when my life does.

I pressed down on the accelerator, hoping to make the car speed up, but it was already going as fast as it possibly could.

I sighed and summoned up all my patience.

Minutes later, I was at the airport.

I swerved the car into a parking spot and leaped out. I burst in through the doors of the airport and tried to keep from running vampire-speed to the ticket counter. I gained some weird looks as I rushed through, but I didn't care. I needed a ticket to Italy.

Vaguely, I wondered why I was in such a rush to end my life, but I pushed the thought away. I wasn't going to live like this, missing her all the time. She chose someone else, throwing my heart away. Why would I live without my heart?

I stood in line at the ticket counter, trying to push my impatience away. Why was I so antsy? I normally have great patience. It comes naturally, living 107 years and not sleeping. But now, waiting was extremely difficult.

"Next in line," a voice called me forward. The voice sounded nasaly, bored, and annoyed. I stepped up quickly.

"I need a ticket for the next flight to Italy."

"The next flight to Italy leaves at 6 A.M."

"What time is it now?"

"3:26 P.M., sir."

Is she kidding me? The next flight is tomorrow?

"Are you sure that is the soonest flight you have? This is urgent."

"I'm sorry sir, that's the best we can do. We have a flight leaving in 3 minutes, but all tickets are sold."

"I can stand."

"I'm sorry, sir, but we cannot allow that. The next flight is tomorow. Would you like to purchase a ticket?"

Their earliest flight is 14 and half hours away! That is utterly ridiculous. I growled.

"If you're sure I couldn't possibly get on the flight leaving now, then yes, I would like to purchase a ticket for the flight leaving tomorrow." My annoyance was audible as I said 'tomorrow.'

The teller smirked and asked for my information and money. Soon, I had a ticket in my hand and I walked over to the seats and sat down to wait for my flight. Fourteen hours away. What was I going to do until then?!

Well, what else was there to do other than think about Bella and how much I wished I was with her, happy like we used to be.

I loved her so much. I still love her. I wish she still loved me. Everything was perfect when she loved me.

Or should I say, when I _thought_ she loved me?

I don't understand why she would say she loved me and then change her mind, but I still haven't completely convinced myself that she never did. I suppose I'm just wishing that she did love me once. But why would she suddenly love someone else if she loved me? Of course, why would she pretend to love me when she didn't?

Argh. The endless circle of questions in my mind is very infuriating. Questions that have no answers. Questions that never will get answered. Questions with no purpose. Then why can't I stop asking them?

I sighed.

I looked around the airport, just trying to occupy my mind before it drove me insane. Pretty much everywhere I looked, there was a person. A person waiting for their flight. A person buying items at the gift shop. A person struggling with their luggage. A person gretting someone coming off a flight. A person eating. A person sleeping. A person waiting. A person talking on their cellphone. A person trying to find another person. People everywhere, just waiting for their flight, or coming off of it. Those people seemed more accepting of the wait. In the seats in front of me were two young couples. The women both had long dark blonde hair. One's highlights were more prominent. Both were asleep on their partner's shoulders. The two men were chatting warily. To my left side was a middle-aged man in a business suit, briefcase at his feet and newspaper next to him. He was busy typing on his laptop. To my right, an old woman, sipping her coffee and checking her watch every half minute. A woman who looked to be in her mid-30's was walking briskly to the seats, her heels clacking against the floor. She spied an empty seat, next to the old woman on my right.

"Mind if I sit here?" She asked the woman. The old lady motioned for her to go ahead and she sat, placing her purse in her lap. She sighed and looked around, glancing at me. She leaned forward, looking at me.

"Hi," she smiled.

"Hello." I casually turned my head, looking around the airport more. I was not in the mood to talk to strangers. The sounds and smells were almost overwhelming and I considered going to the rest room, just to escape all the hustle and bustle, but I figured it would be no different. A few feet away from me, a mother with her child was digging in her purse for something. The child was pulling on the mother's leg and pointing to a tan teddy bear with a red bow in the gift shop. The mother didn't notice at first, but once she found what she was looking for, she paid attention to her child. Her eyes followed the child's pointing finger to the bear. She knelt down in fron of the child, patting her cheek.

"I'm sorry, honey. We don't have extra money to spend on something right now. Maybe after Daddy gets better."

"But, I want him to have the teddy. He likes red, and he needs a friend to hold when we're not there. The teddy can make him all better again." The child didn't sound whiney or bratty, just sad. Before I could think it through, I was on my way to the gift shop. I figure I could do something nice before my last flight. I picked up the bear the child had pointed at and paid for it. I walked over to where the mother and her child were standing, same spot as before. The mother looked up, curious. I smiled at her and squatted down beside the child, still smiling. I held out the bear.

"Make sure you tell this bear to help your daddy feel better." The child grabbed the bear from my hands and proceeded to tell the bear about her daddy's cancer.

As I was walking away, I heard the mother call "Thank you." Her voice was deep with gratitude and tears. I smiled at myself. I didn't think that my depression meant I couldn't try to make life better for some before I go, right? Maybe that's what life was about. Cheering others up when you can't be cheered yourself.

The thought made me feel better, and I was glad for the opportunity to make someone smile before I went to Italy. Even if I couldn't truly smile myself. Plus, I was greatful for the temporary distraction from my seemingly endless waiting.

A short-lived distraction, but still.

And now that the distraction was over, my mind threatened to start with the questions and wallowing.

Why? Why was it like this? Why didn't she choose me? Why did I let myself fall in love with her? Why must I be forced to live longer than necessary? Stupid airport. Fourteen hours away! Ugh. And what can I do in the meantime? Others might sleep to pass the time, but that is impossible for me.

I could go somewhere and come back. But where would I go? What would I do? Nothing's fun. Nothing's interesting. Nothing has a meaning. Not without her.

I miss her so much.

I only wish I could somehow make her love me again. But I promised, if she decided she didn't want me, I would leave. So that's what I've done. And I never expected it to hurt so much. I never could have expected it would hurt this much. Knowing my end is nearing isn't reassuring either. I just wish I didn't have to wait. I want it to be over now. I don't want to wait until six o'clock in the morning. I want to go to the Volturi now, and have them kill me now.

Oh jeez. I sound like a whiney five-year-old who isn't getting their way. Ugh. Is this really what I've been reduced to? A bratty child? I can't believe how extremely immature I've gotten.

At least I'm not sitting in a corner and dry-sobbing, like I want to. _That_ would be really childlike. But a child would probably never even begin to comprehend the amount of pain and emotion I feel now.

I sighed and sat down again to wait for my flight.

**Ashleigh's POV**

Italy? Did he really say Italy? Oh, please don't let him mean Volterra, Italy.

After my shift was over, I jumped into my car and raced to the Newcastle Airport. Hopefully I was just overreacting, but he definitely looked like one of us. That pale skin, those topaz eyes, the unnatural beauty. I'm pretty sure he was a vampire. And if he was, then I hoped that he didn't mean what I thought he meant.

But, his one love just turned on him and he said he was going to Italy. Why else would a depressed vampire go to Italy, if not for suicidal purposes?

Argh. I'm frustrating myself. I can't do anything about it until I find him again, so why am I worrying?

And what does it matter to me if he kills himself? Really?

I shook my head, trying to sort out my thoughts. Well, he was really beautiful, more beautiful than any other vampire I had ever seen. I hadn't seen much, but I know when I think someone is totally fit or not. Of course, it doesn't matter if I think he's good looking, because he already has a love. A love that doesn't love him, but I'm pretty sure that doesn't matter. He sounded like he would never get over her. Which would be why he's heading to Italy.

I stomped my foot on the accelerator.

When I got to the airport, I swerved my car into the closest spot I could find and ran towards the door, trying to maintain human speed. I raced to the ticket counter, encountering some weird looks as I ran, but I didn't care. I had to get to Italy and stop this guy, if he was planning on provoking the Volturi.

Luckily, there was no line at the ticket counter.

"Hi, I need a ticket to the soonest possible flight to Italy."

"The next flight to Italy is at 6 A.M. tomorrow."

6 A.M. tomorrow?! What if he got on a flight before that? He would get there way before me? And if he _was_ going to the Volturi, would I get there too late?

"You don't have any earlier flights?"

"No, ma'am."

I sighed. I'll do my best.

"I'll take a ticket, please." I handed over the money for a ticket and went to find a seat to wait out the thirteen hours until my flight.

I'd never liked sitting at the lobby seats, because of a bad experience there once, so I walked over to the cafe section and sat down at a table. It was the farthest table away from the lobby seats, and it was perfectly placed to keep an eye on the clock. And it was also small, so there was a slim chance someone else would need the table to eat on. The perfect table.

I sighed and pulled out my iPod, hoping to distract my mind for another thirteen hours. I put my iPod on shuffle and sighed as the music to my favorite song filled my ears. It was 'Running Away' by Midnight Hour.

**Edward's POV**

After an hour passed, I could not take my mind's questions anymore. I proceeded to get out my iPod when I heard a voice singing. I paused and listened.

_Dont lie and say that it's okay_

_It's alright if there's nothing more to say_

_So I'm running away, I'm leaving this place_

_Yeah... I'm running away, I'm running away_

_Don't tell me I'm the one to blame_

_It's too late for you to make me stay. No, I won't stay_

_So I'm running away, I'm leaving this place,_

_Yeah... I'm running away, I'm running away_

_And faster than you can follow me from this lonely place_

_And farther than you can find me, I'm leaving, yeah... I'm leaving today_

_I, I'll never let you find me, I'm leaving you behind with the past and No I won't look back_

_And I don't want to hear your reasons, don't want to hear you tell me why I should stay_

_Try, try to understand me, try to understand what I say when I say I can't stay_

_I, I'm moving on from this place, leaving and I won't wait, I'm running away_

_I'm running away, I'm leaving this place,_

_Yeah...I'm running away, I'm running away_

Ah, one of my favorite songs. 'Running Away' by Midnight Hour. Funny how it seemed to relate to what I was doing now. I wonder who was singing it, because it certainly didn't come from the airport's overhead speakers. Whoever sang it has good taste, and a good voice. I could tell she was singing at the top of her lungs, but it sounded musical. I wonder what kind of wacko would sing a song in the middle of an airport.

**Ashleigh's POV**

When the song ended, I opened my eyes to see people staring at me. Oops. I think I sang that out loud. If I was a human, I would definitely be blushing right now. I hope I didn't sing it at the top of my lungs. That would have made it even more embarrassing. The next song came on and I turned down the volume a bit, so I wouldn't be very tempted to sing out loud. Yet I still found myself whispering the chorus.

"Crush... crush... crush... crush crush." Somehow I managed to refrain from singing more than that. Hopefully I would never make the mistake again. I can't believe I didn't notice it the first time. But that's the good thing about earbuds, you can sing at the top of your lungs and still not be able to hear yourself. Too bad everyone else in the airport did. Oh well. I'll live.

**Edward's POV**

I turned on my iPod and scrolled through my songs, trying to decide what to listen to. I hate it when I want to listen to music, but have no idea what to listen to. Even my favorites don't appeal to me. I sighed and put it on shuffle. I smiled as the song I'd just heard somebody singing at the top of their lungs came on.

I turned up the volume and let the music drown out my thoughts as I waited for my flight.

Twelve and a half hours later, my iPod battery was half gone and the airport's speakers were announcing that the flight to Italy was now being boarded. I looked at the clock. 5:56 A.M. I had four minutes to get to the plane. But I wasn't worried; I knew I would make it.

I sprinted through the airport towards the plane that would take me to my final destination. When I arrived, there were two minutes left until 6:00. I handed my ticket to the plane assistant. He chekced the ticket, ripped off the bottom stub, and motioned me towards the plane. I glanced at the ticket to see where I would be sitting. Perfect. I have a window seat. Good for distractions, and I won't be bothered by neighbors getting up as I would be if I were sitting in the aisle seat.

I walked down the aisle towards my seat, realising that I could have bought a First Class ticket. Oops. Too late now. Oh, well. I didn't need a First Class seat anyway.

I settled into my window seat and tried not to seem impatient as I waited for the plane to take off.

A voice over the intercom directed us to put on our seatbelts and turn off our cellphones so we could take off. I put on my seatbelt. I had left my phone in my car, figuring Alice would see my plan and try to stop me. There was no way anyone was going to stop me this time.

Once the plane was high in the air, the stewardess started coming down the aisle, asking if anybody needed anything. When she got to my aisle, she stopped at stared at me, ignoring the passengers to the right of me.

"Are you comfortable, sir? Do you need anything? A drink, a pillow?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Are you sure, sir? You don't need anything at all?"

"No, thank you." I tried to keep my voice level.

She looked disappointed, but she moved on to the other passengers.

I sighed. What was with these Seaham people? First the lady at the airport who sat next to the old woman next to me, and now the stewardess? Certinaly I couldn't dazzle people while I was depressed and irritated. Bella would probably disagree, but I really failed to see why people were attracted to me. If they even were as attracted to me as she said they were.

I shook my head and got out my iPod again. It would be no good to think about her for the entire duration of the flight.

But even with music to distract me, she was always in my mind. Making me wonder why. Why didn't she love me anymore? Had she ever loved me? What was the purpose of having a heart, if it was only going to get stomped on and ripped apart?

I drew in a shaky breath, trying not to break down into tearless sobs.

I forced all thoughts of her out of my mind and concentrated on the music.

A couple of hours later, the plane was landing. I pulled the earbuds out of my ears and put my iPod away, buckling my seatbelt. Soon, I would be on my way to Volterra.

The plane landed and people started to unboard. As much as I wanted to, I restrained myself from shoving the crowds away. Finally, I was in the airport. An overly cheerful voice reminded me not to forget my luggage. What luggage? I rolled my eyes. It's not like I was on vacation. I was on a mission. A mission to die. Wow, that sounded cheesy. Stupid thoughts. My brain has really been whack these past couple of days. Either I'm only thinking about her, or I'm thinking immaturely and uncharacteristically. Her rejection has really rendered my mind useless. And my life. Useless, hopeless, loveless. Without her.

Thankfully, it will be over soon.

I rented a car and headed outside, grateful that it was raining and not very sunny. I really didn't need anything to delay this decision of mine.

I got into the car and headed down the street, going as fast as I could. Too bad the plane didn't land in Volterra. That would have been very convenient. But I knew the way there, and it wouldn't take very long to get there. At least I hoped. I probably should have stolen a fast car, instead of renting a car. Too late now.

Soon, I saw the city of Volterra in front of me. I hurried through the gate.

Now what to do? I really hadn't thought out my plan. Should I ask the Volturi to kill me? Or just provoke them immediately?

They didn't kill me last time I asked them to, so why would it be different this time? Of course, we kind of got on their nerves last time. But if I did ask, and they said no, would they escort me out of Volterra, making my other plan useless? Should I just expose myself first, without asking them to kill me?

I was stuck. Why hadn't I thought about this first? I'd had plenty of time to think about it. But instead, I used my music to drown out my thoughts.

Frustrated, I hit the steering wheel. The car swerved and I corrected its direction before it could hit anyone. That would probably make the Volturi mad. But not enough to kill me. And I couldn't let my last act be murder.

But what could I do? Should I just ask them to kill me? Beg, if needed? Would they realise how serious I was this time?

Suddenly, a person appeared in front of my car. I hit the brakes immediately. The person walked around to my door. I rolled down the window.

"Edward," an apathetic voice said. Jane.

"Hello, Jane." I kept my voice level as I got out of the car.

"What brings you here? And where is your human pet?"

Pain struck me at the mention of Bella. I avoided the question.

"I'm here to see the Volturi," I stated evenly.

"Very well. I'm sure Aro will be delighted to see you." She smiled. I felt a violent agony rip through me. I waited for the pain and writhing to come, but I only felt a raw ache. I looked at Jane. She looked surprised. I was too, but I kept my face emotionless. She squinted her eyes and smiled wider, concentrating on me. I still felt no pain.

She frowned at me and I stared back at her coolly.

Her eyes narrowed as she turned on her heel and walked in the direction of the Volturi's castle. I followed her, still undecided on my course of action. Would I just greet Aro, or would I ask him to kill me?

Soon, we reached the castle and I noticed that Gianna was no longer the receptionist. I vaguely wondered if they had kept her, or if she had suffered the fate of many others. The same fate I was eager to endure myself. Death.

Jane led me through the halls and we appeared before Aro's door. She waltzed in.

"Aro, you have a visitor.

"Hello Jane. Oh, hello Edward. What brings you here?" He held out his hand and I hesitated, not sure if the intensity of my decision would convince him or deter him.

Aro noticed my hesitance and dropped his hand, nodding.

"I guess I'll know why you're here soon enough." He looked at me expectantly.

"Before he tells you why he's here, Aro, I have some interesting information for you." Jane interrupted.

"Oh?" Aro turned to Jane, intrigued. He held out his hand. She shook her head slightly. He looked confused, but still interested.

She turned to me as his eyes followed her, waiting.

A grin appeared on her face as she concentrated on me intently. Again, I felt no pain. Just aching. Aro's eyes widened.

"My, my. That _is_ interesting. Thank you for the demonstration, Jane. Please do not continue. We wouldn't want to torture him more than necessary." Jane stepped back.

Aro turned to me.

"No, I do not know why Jane's power doesn't work on me," I answered before he could speak. Maybe I'm in too much emotional pain to recognize the physical pain.

"Hmm. It is a mystery indeed. Now, would you mind telling me why I am graced with your presence today?"

Before I could even think about what to say, or if I would tell them my intention for being here, I was speaking.

"I came here to die." Aro looked a little shocked. I suppose that was a dramatic sentence.

"I simply cannot find a reason to live anymore. Although, who's to say I was living in the first place? It's not like I'm actually alive. But I didn't come here to discuss theology or philosophy with you. I cam to ask you to kill me. Please."

"And why would we do that?" He looked amused.

"Because I cannot find a reason or a purpose to continue existing. I do not wish to exist any more. Every single second that I am still here is agony. Pure agony. Why would I want to continue on this way?" I was being careful not to divulge too much information.

"But how could I do that to my dear friend Carlisle? Certainly he does not wish for you to stop existing."

"It's my existence! If I'm too miserable to go on, if I wish it to stop, then it is _my_ choice! Not Carlisle's! And you know that he would not dare be angry with you, even if you did kill me. So, Aro, what is stopping you?"

Aro started to laugh at my angry outburst and desperation. His thoughts were also carefully blocked. Very annoying.

"It does seem like you really wish to die, but I am sorry, Edward. I cannot give you what you want. Unles you would care to tell me the reason why, then I may be persuaded." He held out his hand again.

"No, thank you, Aro. But I will find another way." I turned and walked out, ignoring his laughter.

"Nice to see you again, Edward. Please say hello to Carlisle for me."

Did he honestly think I was ever going to see Carlisle again? Was he just taunting me, daring me to try and kill myself?

It would be done. Even if Aro didn't willingly want to kill me, he would. He'd have no choice after I exposed myself to Volterra.

But how would I do it?

Feeding was not an option. I could go with tradition and expose myself to the sun. But was that boring? Or perhaps it was sentimental?

I was outside now and I looked up at the sky. Sun threatened to break out of the clouds. I looked around me. There were a lot of people. Not as much as the last time, when there was a big event going on, but there were enough to make this work.

I sighed. My decision was made. I would step out into the sun, just like last time. But there was no one to stop me this time. Nothing can stop me now.

I headed towards the clock tower and climbed up to where I was the last time. Don't think about last time! The memories only make it hurt more. Last time, I had thought Bella was dead, and I'd brought it on to myself. This time, she wasn't dead, but she loved someone else.

A sound of pain escaped my lips as I sat down to wait for the sun to appear. Maybe now, in my last hour, I could think of her. How beautiful she was. Her soft brown hair, her warm skin, her deep and understanding eyes. Oh, her eyes. I could look at them forever. I want to look at them forever. That's all I ever wanted. To be with her forever and gaze into her eyes, marveling at her beauty. Why had she stopped loving me? Why?

A wave of agony washed through me and I tried to pull myself together. Now was not the time to think about her. I could not afford the pain. It would only delay me furthur. But this would be the last time that I would be able to think of her. Still, I could not be distracted from the end.

I glanced up at the sky. The sun was starting to break through the clouds, and the rain had long since stopped.

I drew in a breath, keeping myself from sobbing and I focused on what would happen next, keeping my mind off her.

I stood up and walked to the edge of the clock tower, still in the shadows. The clouds has completely disappeared now. One more step forward, and I would be in the sun. My hands started to undo the buttons on my shirt. Slowly, one by one until they were all unbottoned. I shrugged out of the sleeves and placed my shirt on the ground, next to my feet. I glanced up at the sky once more. Perfect amount of sunlight. I looked down at the ground. People were scattered all around, perfectly in view of the tower. I closed my eyes and stretched out my arms, making sure the sun would touch every centimeter of my bare skin.

I lifted my head up towards the sky and lifted my foot up, about to take the step forward.

"Goodbye, Bella. I love you." I whispered as my foot made its way to the ground.

Suddenly, I was whipped back by a pair of strong stone arms.

**LE GASP! Don't commit suicide, Edward! Don't!**

**Yep, I know you all are screaming that. And you're about to track me down and torture me. Don't get aheard of yourselves! Wait for the next chapter!**

**HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR ASHLEIGH! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!**

**uno, dos, uno dos tres! Happy happy birthday from all of us to you! we wish it was our birthday so we could party too, OLE!**

**lol that song is from a restaurant. very embarrassing, they give you a sombrero! did i spell that right?**

**REVIEW!!**


	18. Savior

**I don't own Twilight. Happy Birthday, Ashleigh!**

**Edward's POV**

"I can't believe it. I can't believe you'd actually do that. Are you an idiot? What the--" A furious voiced hissed in my ear, breaking off and softening.

"I had hoped that this wasn't what you meant. But it was. Thankfully, I got here just in time."

No, no, no, no, no, no, no! This could not be happening! I needed to be dead. Why was I still alive? Why would someone save me? Who saved me?

I opened my eyes to find a pair of dark topaz eyes staring right back at me.

"Edward, what were you thinking? I know your one love chose someone else, but that doesn't mean you should kill yourself."

"Who are you?" I demanded.

"My name is Ashleigh."

"From the diner?" She nodded.

"What... why?"

"I could detect the depression in your voice and in your face, and when you said you were going to Italy, well, I feared the worst. It turns out to be a good thing that I did, though, or else you would have been dead by now."

I quickly jumped to my feet.

"Don't you see?" I hissed angrily.

"That's it. That's what I wanted. I wanted to die. And you just kept me from doing the one thing--" She interrupted me, placing a hand on my chest.

"You didn't really want to die."

"Yes, I--" I tried, but she interrupted me again.

"No, you just didn't want to live without her."

Ashleigh started to walk away, into the shadows of the clock tower. What kind of cryptic crap was that? And why was I so intrigued to know what she meant?

I followed her.

"What the heck are you tallking about?" I demanded, walking towards her. She held out a hand. In her hand was a black cloak. I put it on. We started to walk down the clock tower. **(not literally down the tower. I mean, there must be steps right?) **When we got to the bottom, we started walking towards where I parked my car.

"You didn't want to die, Edward. You just didn't want to live without her." She said it as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

"OK, but if I can't live without her, and I can't have her, wouldn't death be the only option?" This girl really wasn't making any sense.

She stopped dead in her tracks at my words, turning her head slightly to catch my gaze.

"Suicide is never an option." Her dark eyes stared into mine. She looked dead serious.

Then her face lightened up.

"Which is why I have another option." We had reached her car then and she motioned for me to get in the passenger seat.

I rolled my eyes and got in.

"And what might that be?"

She started the car. "Get her back," she said and started to drive.

My confusion quickly wore off, replaced by annoyance.

"You think I hadn't thought of that? If there was any way I _could_ get her back, I would have done so by now. She loves someone else. I can't exactly make her love me again. And I promised her that I would never try. This would be my only option." I was surprised she actually let me talk that long, without interrupting me.

"It's not the only option. You could try to live without her. Or find someone else." She must have seen the objection on my face, because she started heading in a different direction.

"Or you could consider this, maybe she doesn't love someone else." Her words sparked hope in me, but I shut it down quickly.

"No. I saw them embracing. He was holding her like I always had." I heard Ashleigh's next thoughts.

"And it wasn't just a friendly hug. She's not much of an intimate person." Only with me, I added in my head, causing a twinge of pain in my chest.

"Did she tell you that she no longer loved you?"

All defensive words I had disappeared. "No."

Ashleigh smiled, certain she had found the loophole in my plans.

I told myself not to feel hope. Just because Bella hadn't said she didn't love me, didn't mean she still loved me. I saw her with Daniel. There was no way she could love me.

"What was the last thing you talked about?"

"Well, actually, we fought. I was so stupid. She told me there was a new vampire in town, and I didn't believe her just because I didn't think it could be true. Later, I found out that Alice's couldn't have seen it anyway, 'cause he blocks powers."

"Then why didn't you go back and apologise?"

Her tone wasn't snobby or condescending at all, but I automatically stiffened.

"I couldn't right away. Carlisle made me stay and discuss letting the new vampire into our coven. When I did go back, I found him holding her. The way only I was allowed to."

"Still doesn't mean she stopped loving you," Ashleigh mumbled.

"Oh, yeah? And how would you know? Did Bella come tell you to stop me from killing myself? Did she tell you to convince me that she still loved me? Only to have my heart broken again? Or did Alice see me with the Volturi? Did she send you to save me, so the family would be saved from depression? Does anyone give a freaking darn what _I'm_ going through?!" My words were harsh and angry at first, but my pain was also obvious. I sighed and leaned back against the seat, closing my eyes and pinching the bridge of my nose, trying not to break into tearless sobs.

"No. No one talked to me. I haven't talked to other vampires in over a century. Until I saw you, and I knew I couldn't just let you kill yourself." Her voice was soft, full of compassion. I scoffed. I didn't need her sympathy. I need Bella. I only need Bella. I only want Bella.

I sighed. "Where are we going?"

Ashleigh glanced at me before fixing her eyes on the road ahead.

"Forks."

"What the--? Stop the car right now."

"No."

"I'm not going back there.

"You are. Whether you decide to stay there or not. I'm going to meet your family."

"Then go without me."

"No." Resolution was written all over her face. Looked like I was stuck.

"What made you decide not to talk to others for more than a century?" I was changing the subject, but I was also interested in her past.

"I...had a bad...experience...with one of them." She clenched her jaw. She obviously didn't want to talk about it.

"How did you find me, anyway?"

"When you said you were going to Italy, I feared the worst. And when my shift was over, I raced to the airport. When I found out that the soonest flight was the next morning, I was worried that you would get there before me and I would be too late."

I couldn't help my next question from coming out. "Why did you care?"

She looked at me. Thoughts raced through her head too fast for me to read them.

"I don't know." Her words were practically a whisper. She looked back at the road.

The rest of the drive to the airport was spent in silence. We got the the airport and bought tickets for Washington, much to my dismay. Then we settled in to wait the three hours until the flight was boarding. I seemed to be doing a lot of waiting recently. And I was still, unfortunately, alive. Why was she dragging me back to Forks? Why?

**OK. So I just figured I should write a chapter, telling how Ashleigh saved him or whatever, so you guys woukdn't kill me. lol. Ashleigh will be in the story more, so I guess this chapter isn't exclusive to Obsessed.with.writing's birthday... oh well.**

**this chapter was ok. i like my ideas for the story, but they're going in my head too fast and only rough ideas and not written, and just.. .wow. I'm going to have to work at this. whatever. i should shut up now. PLEASE REVIEW**


	19. Flight to Forks

**I was told to update. By someone who is a character in this story. My biggest fan, Obsessed.with.writing**

**so this is a chapter. please review. vote in my poll.**

**I do not own Twilight.**

**Edward POV**

"So, tell me about her."

Ashleigh and I had been on a plane for about an hour, just sitting in silence.

"What do you want to know?" I sighed.

"The basics. Her name, where you met, stuff like that."

"Her name is Bella. We met at Forks High School last year, in Biology class. Her blood was so inviting, so sweet. I almost killed her right then. But I didn't, and then I avoided her for awhile, until I couldn't avoid her anymore."

"She's human." Ashleigh's voice wasn't condescending or disapproving, just stating a fact.

"Yes. As much as she wishes she wasn't, she is."

"What do you mean?"

"She wants me to turn her. I wanted to keep her human, but we had finally made a compromise -- I would change her after she married me."

Ashleigh gasped a little.

"So, you two were..."

"Engaged," I finished for her with a nod of my head and a sad smile on my face.

"Oh," she breathed and leaned back against the seat. "Wow. That must make it so much more difficult."

I shurugged.

"It would have been difficult either way."

We sat in silence for awhile longer. I was trying not to think about Bella, but I wasn't succeeding.

"So, why do you want to go to Forks?" Yes, I was changing the subject.

Her normally blocked mind opened and a thought slipped out. _To get you back together with Bella._

"I want to meet your family. I've never really talked to any covens, and I guess I want to see what one is like."

"She won't take me back." I answered her thought and not what she said out loud.

"You never know until you try."

"I'm not going to try. I promised her I wouldn't."

"Then _I'll _try," Ashleigh said with a smug smile and turned towards the window. Somehow, I knew the discussion was over. I wonder if she had the gift of stubborn persuasion or something. It seems as if, when Ashleigh made up her mind, that was the way it was going to be. Like earlier, in the car, she said we were going to Forks. And, well... we are.

**Le gasp. That was a terribly SHORT chapter! I'm so sorry! I thought it was going to be longer! OK, well I really need you guys to vote in my poll! It will effect the next chapter maybe. Or the chapter after that. Anyway, I need an answer really soon! If you want more chapters anyway! mwahahaha. yeah. Also, in your review, tell me if you want a POV from Ashleigh. I was considering adding one at the end of this chapter, but I didn't know if you guys would like it. So please review - tell me if you want Ashleigh's POV, and vote in my poll! Thanks!**


	20. Thoughts Growing Bitter

**ok before i start this chapter, i have a little AN. reading over this chapter, i've noticed that Ashleigh knows the Cullen coven is big and Edward can read minds, even though he's never said that. so, to stop these facts from being plot holes, let me point this out: Since the Cullens are the biggest coven besides the Volturi, word probably got around. And Ashleigh's not a newborn, so maybe she met Carlisle 200 years ago or something. so, don't review pointing out that mistake or anything. lol. REVIEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!**

**Ashleigh's POV**

I hadn't meant for that thought to slip out, but it did. Oh well. I guess it's better that he knows I'm determined to get him back together with Bella. Though I really have no clue why. I guess I can just tell how much he loves her, and how much being away from her hurts him.

And somehow, I just know that it was a misunderstanding or something. I don't know how I know this, since I have no psychic or extreme knowledge powers that I know of, but I can just tell. And if Bella feels the same way about Edward as he feels about her, there's no way she could ever stop loving him.

I told Edward I wanted to meet his family, see what a coven is like, but I'm not so sure. It's amazing I've even lasted this long associating with just one vampire. But so many of them? I don't know if I'll be able to handle it. There's a reason why I stayed away from other vampires for such a long time. Seems like that decision is all but thrown out of the window now.

And for what? To play Cupid? What made me so sure it would even work?

My thoughts were quickly turning bitter, making me sigh in frustration.

But I was pretty certain that Bella still loved Edward, even though I had never met her. And I didn't think it would be that hard to get them together. Edward was hurting without her, so much so that he even wanted to die. She would definitely care about that, and loose ends would be tied up quickly. Once she sees him, I probably won't even be needed. Is it worth risking myself pain to rid Edward of his?

I glanced over at Edward unconsciously. That was when I realised I hadn't been blocking my thoughts. I quickly blocked them again, mentally cursing myself for being so stupid and cursing Edward for being able to read minds. I could see curiousity on his face as he mulled over my thoghts, but his pain was still evident.

It was definitely worth it.

**sorry it's short. I think it was needed. tell me what you think.**

**Some poll results-**

**3 votes for Ashleigh with Daniel if Bella and Edward get together**

**1 vote for Ashleigh and Daniel just going back to their own lives if Edward and Bella get together.**

**1 vote for Ashleigh and Edward being together.**

**If I don't get more votes, I'll go with the majority as is, but I was totally heading in a different direction so it would take me awhile to get there. And someone (bubbz) suggested a separate story for Ashleigh and Daniel. It might actually be neceassary, but I don't know yet. Please vote if you haven't already! wow this An was longer than the chapter! sorry! please review and be patient, i need to work out some details now that i've gotten this far in my story but i will update as much as possible! thanks!**


	21. The Thief aka Daniel's Song

**For all you family-cursed impatient people, sorry about the wait! Please review! I don't own Twilight!**

**Bella's POV**

"Good morning, Bella." I woke up to a soft, sweet voice in my ear. Was it really morning already? I grunted and rolled over, my hands searching for Daniel. I found him and pulled myself closer, opening my eyes.

"Hmm," I said sleepily. He grinned and wrapped his arms around me, putting his face closer to mine.

"I love you, Bella." His face was merely inches from mine, and when he spoke, his breath swirled in my face. I breathed it in, becoming more awake by the second. I pulled his face to mine, entangling my fingers in his hair. His hand pressed into my back gently, keeping me where I was. Yeah, like I would move away. I snorted, a hard task considering the fact that I'd forgotten to breathe. I ended up choking on my own air instead. Daniel stopped kissing me and pulled away as I struggled to get air flowing in and out of my lungs. He looked at me.

"You ok?"

"I'm fine," I breathed and secured his lips to mine again. He sighed, holding me to him again and let my fingers comb through his hair roughly.

"Bella," he whispered as his lips trailed down my face and neck to my collarbone and back up. His breathing was ragged. It reminded me that I needed to breathe. So I did. Once my breathing became more even, his lips came up to meet mine again.

I don't know how long we stayed there, but my lungs could finally take no more. Daniel seemed to realise this and he pulled away, still keeping my body close to his.

"What do you want to do today, Bella?" He absentmindedly played with a strand of my hair, tucking it behind my ear and untucking it again.

"What did you have in mind?" His eyes glinted before returning to nonchalance again.

"The Cullens miss you."

"Really?" I sat up a bit, but not enough to break his embrace.

"Yes. Why is that a surprise to you?"

"I don't know. No one came over here or invited me over there, I just... I don't know." I just thought they only liked me because of Edward, and now that he was gone, they didn't want to deal with me anymore.

I hadn't said the words out loud, and Daniel couldn't read minds, but he knew what I was thinking.

"Did you think they only liked you because of Edward? I can assure you that isn't true, especially in Alice and Esme's case."

"So we're going over there today?"

"Unless you don't want to."

"No, I'm fine. I do. I miss them also."

"I figured that." He smiled.

"Just give me a quick minute to get ready."

"Okay." He let go of me reluctantly and I gave him a swift kiss before grabbing my toiletry bag and some clothes before heading to the shower.

I showered and dressed as quickly as possible. I couldn't wait to see Alice and Esme and everyone. I really hoped Alice wouldn't feel the need to take me shopping.

Oh, who am I kidding? It's Alice. Of course she'll feel the need to take me shopping. She always does. Hopefully she won't succeed this time.

After getting dressed, I raced back into my room where Daniel was still waiting, sitting on my bed.

"I'm ready to go." I walked over to him and grabbed his hand, pulling him off of my bed and towards the door. He laughed at my excitement.

"Wait, Bella. You need breakfast." I was about to protest, but my stomach rumbled. He heard it and smirked at me. I rolled my eyes and headed down the stairs, being careful not to run. Running down the stairs usually ended bad for me. When I walked into the kitchen, Daniel was already there, setting a bowl on the table for me. He was just at my side on the stairs a second ago! This vampire speed stuff gets a little unnerving sometimes.

Daniel grabbed a spoon for me as I was grabbing a box of cereal. I smiled at him and poured the cereal into my bowl. I turned around to put the cereal back, almost running into him. He had the milk in his hand.

"Thanks," I said as he poured the milk for me. He smiled and pulled out my chair. I sat down and ate, finishing quickly while he waited patiently. When I was done, I put my bowl and spoon in the sink. I then grabbed my jacket and headed out the door with Daniel.

When we got to the Cullens' house, Alice was outside waiting for us.

"What took you so long?" She screamed and grabbed me in a hug before I was barely out of the car.

"I missed you, Bella!"

"I missed you too, Alice." She let me go and I saw that everyone else was outside as well.

"I missed all of you."

"It's only been a week," Rosalie scoffed and turned to go back inside. Emmett looked at her, then back at me. He gave me a big bear hug and a smile, then went inside to find Rosalie.

"Hi, Bella," Jasper said as Esme said "I've missed you, dear" and hugged me lightly. I smiled at them.

"Shall we go inside?" Carlisle asked. Everyone nodded and headed inside.

Daniel's arm was wrapped around my waist and Alice was on my other side, bouncing with excitement. Jasper was next to Alice. He sent a wave of calm to her and she stopped bouncing slightly, but she glared at him. Her glare only lasted a second or two before her smile broke out again.

"Bella! We have to go shopping!" I groaned. I knew it was coming, sooner or later.

"No, no! We should play a game! Have you ever played Twister, Bella? It's really fun. Or! We could do karaoke! How would you like that, Bella? I bet you would. You'd be really good. Better than Emmett, I bet. But who isn't? Hey! You could totally play Edward's piano! Didn't you say you used to play sometimes? I bet you could figure out how to play just a little bit. Please, Bella? Do something! Hello? Are you even alive in there? Why don't you talk? You're not talking! Play some music, Bella!" Alice switched subjects so much, it was hard to keep up.

Despite myself, I glanced at Edward's piano. Memories and longing washed over me and I found myself walking over to the piano. I trailed my hand across the top, feeling the smooth surface. I could practically see him sitting there, feel his fingers move across the keys, hear the lovely tune of my lullaby. I closed my eyes, willing the pain to go away. Air tugged at my legs, and before I knew it, I was sitting on the piano bench.

"Yay! I knew you would do it. Do you need a songbook? Play something and I'll sing it! Start with something easy, like 'Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star' or 'Mary Had A Little Lamb' or just go crazy with the keys! Play, Bella! We don't care if it sucks, really."

I tested each key out, going from low to high. It wasn't a song, but it was beautiful. Just the sound reminded me of him, reminded me of his beautiful music. I closed my eyes and saw his fingers before me, striking each key to Esme's favorite melody with precision. It was fast and complicated, but I would try to mimic him.

I could play the slow beginning with minor difficulty, but when it came time to speed up, I just let my fingers go where they wanted to go. Soon, the music transformed into a diffierent tune, one I had never heard before. It was simple and possibly immature, but still wonderful. It was music, after all. And music styled after him, played on his piano.

I couldn't believe I was actually playing his piano. Not just playing the piano, but _his._ It was amazing, and quite easy. It's almost as if the fact that he had played it before made it easy for me to find the right keys to make music with.

As I struck the keys carefully and lovingly, words tumbled out of my head and transformed themselves to the music. Words that had been stuck in my head for awhile, but not quite so organised or lyrical. That's when I realised -- I was writing lyrics in my head and playing music with my fingers. I had made a song.

_When I ran into you,  
I swear I never knew  
that I loved you too.  
He'd always been my life,  
wanted me as his wife  
But now I've taken this knife  
and driven it right through  
the hearts of all three,  
One by one, till they were gone.  
All because of you._

_Because I'm wearing my  
Heart on my sleeve, take it if you please  
It's yours if you want it,  
if you want to be the thief  
who took my heart from me._

_When you took it from me,  
you made me see  
I only wanted to be with him forever.  
And no, I had never  
meant to be clever  
and let you hold the key  
To our hearts  
Letting you break them, just for fun,  
trying to be the 'he'_

_Because I'm wearing my  
Heart on my sleeve, take it if you please  
It's yours if you want it,  
if you want to be the thief  
who took my heart from me._

I sang the words in my head as I continued the tune. No way was I going to say these words aloud. Even if they did match the tune perfectly.

The words were too personal, too emotional. And they summed up my feelings perfectly. In a sense, Daniel had taken my heart from me. It was cliche, but it could not possibly seem more true at the moment.

I swallowed my tears and let my fingers wander back to Esme's favorite melody before my tears could spill over, giving me away. I would definitely be thinking about this tonight, and what the lyrics really meant for me.

"Bella! I didn't know you were musical," Emmett's teasing voice jolted me out of my thoughts. I looked up to see eveyone's surprised faces.

"Psh! I knew she was!" Alice beamed at me. I smiled and stood up from the piano bench. Daniel wrapped his arm around me.

"You did good," he said, kissing my hair.

"More so than you, Emmett," Rosalie was saying.

"Are you kidding? I rock the tunes!" Emmett belted out singing some song I'd never heard of, and probably never wanted to. He sang off-key, but no one could say he wasn't having fun. Alice laughed and joined in with him. Pretty soon, everyone was singing and having fun. I quickly forgot about the lyrics I had written in my head and enjoyed my time with the Cullens, but I knew I would think about them later.

**I hope that had the right amount of chill. Anyway, I know Bella doesn't **_**really **_**play piano, but let's just say it was a simple tune... something even **_**I **_**could make. ok? ok. Please REVIEW!**


	22. Being Consumed With Guilt Part One

**Yay! newc chapter! sorry for the delay. I finally know what Ashleigh's past might be. so I'll be working on that. be patient, cause you love me! :D**

**I don't own Twilight!**

**Edward's POV**

The rest of the flight passed in silence. Ashleigh didn't want to talk about herself, and I didn't want to talk about myself, so we didn't talk.

It was after we got off the plane when things got interesting.

"Do you want to drive or shall I?" She asked me.

"Well, you're the one who wants to be here, so I think you should. You're going to have to get a rental, you know."

"I know." We headed towards the car rental booth.

"Um, Ashleigh? Why did you save me anyway?" It was the question that had been on my mind for the past couple of hours. It didn't really matter, but I still wanted to know.

Ashleigh was walking ahead of me and she turned her head slightly to answer me.

"I don't know. Maybe 'cause if I didn't, then I would have felt--" She was stopped walking suddenly, as if she had run into an invisible wall. She turned back around and looked down. There was a little kid, looking down at his splattered icecream cone. Ashleigh's eyes widened as the kid looked back up at her with tears in his eyes.

"Oh no! I am so sorry! Oh, please don't cry. No, no, no. It's okay. I'm sorry. Please, I didn't see you. Let me buy you a new one. I'm sorry. Look, I'll buy you two if you want. Don't cry. I am so sorry, I really didn't mean to. I'm sorry." Ashleigh walked the two steps it took to get to the icecream stand and ordered the kid a triple-scoop chocolate icecream cone. She paid and quickly walked the icecream over to the kid. His eyes widened and a smile appeared on his face when he saw the huge icecream cone. She handed it to him.

"I am so sorry for knocking over the other one. Really. Sorry. I hope that makes up for it." She turned to the mother who was watching the exchange with curiousity and bewilderment.

"I am so sorry. I really didn't mean to."

The mother just shook her head, still dumbfounded, and guided her kid to their destination.

Ashleigh turned back to me and we started walking to the rental car booth again.

"Aww, I feel so bad for that."

"It wasn't really your fault. And hey, you bought him an even bigger icecream cone than he had before."

"I guess." She still looked upset about it. It confused me. Why would she feel bad for accidentally knocking the icecream out of a five-year-old's hand? She even bought him a new one. Why would she still feel guilty about it after buying him a new one?

"What were you saying before? Feel what?"

"Guilty." No surprise there.

"That happens a lot," I said jokingly.

"Yeah," she said sadly.

"I've always felt guilty about things. Sometimes, things that weren't even my fault. It's just who I am, I guess. But one thing in particular stayed with me for a long time, something that I don't think I could ever feel not guilty about."

And with that, Ashleigh started telling me about her past.

"I was responsible for killing my love."

**Oh! Didn't see that one coming, did you? No, I bet you didn't. Sorry for the shortness of the chapter, but it was good so who cares. lol. REVIEW!**


	23. Being Consumed With Guilt Part Two

**Yay for updates! Oddly enough, I don't have much to say in this AN. Weird, I know. Cause my AN's are usually as long as the chapters! lol. OK I'm shutting up now. Please review!**

**I don't own Twilight.**

**Edward's POV**

Before I could ask her what she was talking about, she launched right into her tale.

"I was changed in the early 1700s by a vampire named Caleb. He was also my love, the one person I wanted to spend my life with. Luckily for me, he felt the same way. That was why he changed me, he said. See, he wasn't a vegetarian vampire. He told me that my blood had smelled better to him than any other humans' had before. He kind of made it seem like he was infatuated with my blood." Ashleigh smiled a wry smile, her eyes full of sadness.

"After I was changed, he constantly told me that I was lucky I was so beautiful, or he would have killed me that night. Instead, he says he was so very glad that after he started drinking, he looked up. Told me that if I had not had such a beautiful face, he wouldn't have let me live. But once he saw me, he knew he wanted me for eternity and he stopped drinking. The pain I went through during turning about broke his heart, but he stayed with me and told me what was going on. Once I was changed, I didn't remember any of that, but he told me about it afterwards. When I learned what I was, I was excited that I could spend eternity with this beautiful boy, but I was appalled at the thought of killing humans. In my human life, I was a vegetarian and didn't eat the meat of animals, so I couldn't understand why I would drink the blood of humans. But we found out I didn't have to, that I could spare the humans and drink the blood of animals. I always felt bad afterwards, but I'd rather it be animals than humans."

I found myself smiling at her and nodding my head in agreement.

By this time, we were in the car. Ashleigh looked over at me.

"Speaking of," she said as the car slowed to a stop. I looked out the window at the woods that surrounded us.

"We need to hunt," she said. Before then, I hadn't noticed the itch in my throat. How long had it been since I hunted? My eyes were probably black by now.

We got out of the car and ventured into the woods.

"What happened next?" I asked Ashleigh. I was interested in hearing how she was responsible for killing her love. I doubted that she was though, since she seemed to be guilty about a lot of things that weren't her fault.

"We spent a lot of time together. All of our time, actually. It sounds cheesy, but Caleb was my soulmate. And I his. I wouldn't have had it any other way. I didn't like the fact that he drank the blood of humans, but I didn't make a big deal about it, and I was never around when he did so. It was great, we were together and he loved me more than I ever thought would be possible, and we needed no other company. We never had any, either. We were content to live out eternity together. Just us. Of course, I was not deserving enough to have it that way." Ashleigh's last sentence was agonizing and bitter.

As we took a break from talking to hunt, I mulled over her words. Her relationship with Caleb sounded like my relationship with Bella. I had always questioned why she loved me as much as I loved her, and I wanted to spend eternity with her, but now I'll never be able to.

Pain shook through me and I steered my thought in other directions. I focused on the wildlife ahead of me and my thirst raged. I dropped into a crouch and eyed the animal in front of me, oblivious to the surrounding danger. I pounced and quickly snapped its neck before sinking my teeth into its skin. I drank thirstily, suddenly aware of how long it had been since I'd hunted. I finished that animal quickly and found another one. After a few more, my thirst had finally quieted down and I was able to truly enjoy the warm, pulsing blood as I drank.

Once Ashleigh and I had fully quenched our thirst, we returned to the car. Oddly, I longed to hear more of her story.

"So, how does this make you resposible for his death?" I asked as tactfully as I could. I still didn't believe that she actually held responsibilty.

"Wait a minute, I'm getting there." She smiled at my impatience before becoming sullen again as she spoke again.

"When it started approaching the 1800s, we were informed that the leader of the Volturi was sweeping the earth, looking for all vegetarian vampires. Looking to kill them. We were confused at first, wondering why he would care, but our confusion didn't last long. Aro had arrived in England. I wasn't scared, but Caleb was. He insisted on hiding me and keeping me safe. He found a place for me to stay, well hidden from society and Aro. Every so often, he would go out hunting, for both humans and animals. He would bring me back the animals and then dispose of them somewhere far away from where I was hiding. On some occasions, he returned with information. Aro wanted to kill the vegetarian vampires because he believed they would be a threat to all vampires. He thought that if, by some chance, a human saw one of us drinking an animals' blood, then we would be exposed. He said that when a vampire killed a human it didn't matter, because, well, the human would be dead. But if someone saw one of us killing an animal, it would be public information. And, as you know, the Volturi's one rule is that we don't expose ourselves to humans. He feared that the vegetarian vampires were at risk for doing just that. So he decided to wipe us out."

She paused and closed her eyes, reliving the past.

"I stayed in hiding for a couple of weeks. I told Caleb many times that it was dangerous for him to continue protecting me, but he insisted. I offered to drink from a couple of humans so I would have red eyes and go out to see Aro so he would move on, but Caleb refused to let me do that. He knew how disgusting the idea of drinking humans was to me. So I stayed in hiding. Caleb was certain that Aro would realise there were no vegetarian vampires in the area and continue on with his search elsewhere, but one time when Caleb went hunting, he returned scared. He said that he had ran into Aro, and that Aro had questioned him about me specifically. Caleb was really upset that Aro had learned about me, and he feared for my safety. I feared for his as well. One night, Caleb returned from hunting and we were trying to forget about the danger that loomed overhead when we heard a sound. It was far enough away to not be in sight of my hiding place, so Caleb left me and went out to investigate. I heard him talking to Aro, trying to convince him that there were no vegetarian vampires anywhere near here, and that he didn't know where I was. I came out of my hiding place so I could see them, but I stayed hidden. The entire time, I was scared for Caleb. I'd always told him that he shouldn't risk his life for me, but he just told me that I was worth it and he would not accept life if Aro killed me. I was powerless to do anything about it, so I could only let him protect me and hope that Aro would leave us alone before it was too late. I watched him try to convince Aro to move on, and prayed that Aro would leave and not harm Caleb. When Caleb refused to let Aro read his thoughts, Aro suspected that Caleb was just trying to cover up the fact that he was a vegetarian. I was so attuned to Caleb that I could practically hear his thoughts, even though I'm not a mindreader like you or Aro. He figured that it was best to die himself than let me be killed. I wanted to scream 'no' and go out and tell him not to sacrifice his life for me, but it was too late. Aro was ripping him to shreds. It was so quick, it was over before I could even move. Aro left speedily. I heard him telling his guards about their next destination. I guess he figured that Caleb was the vegetarian he had been looking for. I raced over to where Caleb's torn body lay in fire. I don't know how long I sat there, dry sobbing, but when I was done, I left and moved to a different part of England, resolving never to talk to another vampire again. For one, I was angry that Aro had killed my one love and I didn't want to identify with someone as cruel as him. I didn't understand how he could be so mean, and I never wanted to put myself in that situation. I didn't want to be around vampires if they were capable of killing the one thing I held dearly to my heart. The other reason was that Caleb was my love and I never wanted to find another one, never wanted to feel the same way about anyone ever again. I figured that if I was the cause of the death of one vampire, why risk being the cause of the death of another?"

Ashleigh let her story sink in before talking again.

"I guess that's why I saved you. I knew why you were going to the Volturi, and it seemed like, if I didn't stop you, I would be the cause. The cause of another vampire's death by the hand of Aro. And I didn't think I would be able to deal with it. A girl can only take so much, you know." Her eyes were sad and full of pain. If she was human, she definitely would have been crying. Before I knew what I was doing, I was reaching over and hugging her. A bit awkwardly, I might add, since she was driving. But she seemed to appreciate the motion.

"You shouldn't have had to deal with it in the first place. But it wasn't your fault," I tried to assure her.

She lightened up, but I don't think she actually believed me.

All of the sudden, we were pulling into the driveway of my house.

**Finally! A long chapter! YAY! So, what do you think of Ashleigh's past? Tell me in a review!**


	24. His Homecoming, Her Tears

**Yay! Chapter. Whoo hoo. Why are you not jumping up and down and screaming with excitement?! OMG I bought Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse yesterday! yay... anyway... Thanks to Ashleigh for the idea for the song! lol it's hilarious, so go look it up on youtube.**

**Again, I say I do not own Twilight... nor do I own the song... I actually don't even own the idea for this story. I asked Ashleigh what I should write about and she said 'a new vampire in Forks and Edward doesn't believe Bella' so yeah! Thank Ashleigh if you like this story, and if you don't, it's her fault!! lol just kidding. REVIEW before my AN becomes longer than the chapter. i was so excited to write this chapter. i've been waiting to write the end of it for a long time... except the thing i needed to write starts in this chapter and continues into the next chapter. That doesn't make sense... anyway. read on.**

**Edward's POV**

I gulped and cursed under my breath.

"Edward!" Ashleigh reprimanded me. I smiled at the look of shock on her face.

"You'll behave and introduce me to your family, okay? And don't tell them my past yet, please. I'm not ready." The look in her eyes was pleading but sad. I nodded my head.

She pulled out of the driveway into the spot of grass next to Alice's Porsche. Why it wasn't in the garage, I don't know.

"Let's get this over with," I grumbled. As much as I wanted to see Bella, I hoped she wasn't here. I longed to see her, to hold her again and kiss her, but I was afraid that, if she was here, she wouldn't want me to do that.

As we got out of the car, I could hear music. No, not music. Singing. What the heck was going on?

We walked up to the door and I paused to listen to the singing, trying to determine who it was and what song they were singing.

Of course. I sighed. It was Emmett. I rolled my eyes at Ashleigh. He was singing his favorite song, and possibly the most annoying song in the world, 'World Wide Web Girl' by Toybox.

"I'm sorry about this. Emmett loves karaoke. He also happens to love all the insanely annoying pop girly songs. It's pure torture."

"I think it's funny," Ashleigh smiled and nodded her head to the music. How could she enjoy something like that? It's not even like Emmett can sing it correctly. He's way off key, and he forgets words. I'm going to have to talk to Alice about starting karaoke sessions from now on.

"You won't in a minute," I opened the front door of my house to reveal everyone in the living room, watching as Emmett danced around in pigtails. Yeah, pigtails.

"Emmett! What are you doing?!" I yelled. Normally, he would have paid me no mind, but today he stopped dead in his tracks. So did the rest of the family. They all turned to look at me, mouths hanging open. Alice was the first to recover.

"Edward! You're home!" She ran over to me and practically jumped on me, giving me a hug. Then she turned to Ashleigh and did the same.

"Oh my gosh! What took you so long? Yay! You're finally here. We have soooo much shopping to do!"

"Alice," I started to say, but I was bombarded my hugs from everyone.

"Emmett, I just don't feel right when you have those pigtails in. Can you not hug me right now?" Emmett laughed his booming laugh and stepped away, taking the pigtails out of his hair.

"Ashleigh, I totally saw your decision to come here to Forks and meet us and I was really confused 'cause I didn't see that you were bringing Edward! But you did! Thank you!"

Ashleigh laughed. "Oh, that's nothing. Just wait until you hear about Italy."

"Italy?" The family stopped clamoring around me and turned to Ashleigh, thoroughly curious.

As I was about to speak, to properly introduce Ashleigh to my family, Alice squealed. Pain shot through my ears and I covered them. I was about to yell at her when she spoke.

"You and my brother in Italy!" She giggled. It took me awhile to understand Alice's meaning. I didn't get it until Emmett and Rosalie shared a grin. If I had been human, I would have been blushing. That's when I noticed. Daniel stood in the living room behind the sofa. With Bella.

My eyes stopped where they were, glued to her. My dead heart felt as though it had suddenly stopped beating, though I knew it hadn't beat in over 100 years. Bella had her face turned towards Daniel, talking. She kept her eyes on him. He nodded slightly and let go of her waist. My eyes narrowed. Bella quietly walked over to the back door of my house and slipped out. What? Why was she leaving? I started to follow her, but Ashleigh was talking to me.

"Are you going to introduce me or what?" I sighed and stayed to introduce her to my family.

**Bella's POV**

We were having a great time. After my piano playing, the Cullens started karaoke. Emmett was making a fool of himself as usual, and we were all laughing so hard it hurt. Suddenly, the front door opened.

"Emmett! What are you doing?!" I froze. I would know that wonderful, musical voice anywhere. I begged my ears to be hallucinating, but when everyone stopped doing what they were doing and Alice yelled his name, my fears were confirmed.

Everyone ran to greet him and I sneaked a peek, despite the fact that I would probably hate myself for it later.

Turns out I was right.

Next to Edward was a beautiful blonde vampire. Of course.

My heart squeezed into a ball and then expanded, tearing my chest apart. My lungs stopped taking in air. I struggled to keep from falling over. Luckily, Daniel's arm was wrapped firmly around my waist.

I fought to breathe. Once I was barely able to function, I turned to Daniel.

"Is it okay if I go outside? I just need a quick breath of fresh air." I refused to look at anything or anyone except Daniel, even though I could feel his eyes on me.

Daniel looked at me, concerned.

"Sure. Do you want me to come with you?"

"No, I'll be fine." I smiled weakly. Daniel nodded and let go of me. I quietly walked over to the back door of the Cullens' house, hoping to slip out unnoticed, but knowing that he would notice me.

Why was he here? I asked myself. And why was he here with another girl? Didn't he know how much that would affect me?

Tears threatened to spill over my cheeks. I tried to hold them back as I walked into the forest surrounding the Cullens' house. I made sure not to walk too far. I really didn't want to get lost today. But I walked far enough to be away from the house.

When I was happy with my location, I sank down onto the ground and cried.

**Writing the next chapter now, because I've waited to write this idea, so I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna do it. I need to stop saying I'm gonna do it and actually do it! (lol. you should get that reference, Lexy Writer!) please review.**


	25. Being Reunited and Taking Back Her Heart

**Yay! This chapter almost made me cry, for many different reasons.**

**I don't own Twilight. (ooh, yes i do! I bought it yesterday!! yay! and new moon and eclipse!! woo-hoo!)**

**Edward's POV**

I quickly introduced Ashleigh to my family and let her bond with them and tell them about how she saved me in Italy. I was eager to follow Bella. Luckily for me, Daniel had walked over to hear Ashleigh's stories, so I was able to slip out unnoticed. I looked around for Bella, but I didn't see her. I walked into the woods, hoping that she didn't go too far. I heard a sound over the noise of the rain and headed in the direction the sound was coming from.

Pretty soon, I saw Bella. She was on the ground, crying. I raced over to her as fast as I could. She didn't hear me approach. I sat on the ground next to her.

Normally, I would have taken her in my arms to hold her, but I didn't know how she'd feel about that now. I wanted to hold her, to stroke her hair and kiss her and tell her it was alright. I wanted so much to do that. But I didn't want to make her uncomfortable, and I didn't want her to reject me.

Hesitantly, I reached out to stroke her hair. She reacted to my touch, trying to push herself off the ground. I acted out of habit, pulling her into my lap.

When I realised what I did, I froze, expecting her to get mad, but she just sat in my lap, still crying.

I stroked her hair and held her close to me. Part of me was happy to be holding her again. It was if my heart had been torn in half before, but was now whole. I actually felt like myself now that I was holding Bella. But the other part of me was crying with her, upset that she was sad.

I held her in my lap, stroking her hair. I wanted to tell her that it was ok, that everything was alright, but I restrained myself. Still, it seemed like I should be saying something to her.

"I'm sorry." The words came out of my mouth before I could stop them. But they sounded right, so I kept saying them and stroking her hair.

"I'm sorry." Stroke. "I'm sorry, Bella." Stroke. "Bella, I am so sorry." Stroke. "I am so sorry."

The last one came out as a whisper, and I felt unshed tears in my eyes.

"Sorry? What the heck do you have to be sorry for?" She pushed herself away from my chest to look into my eyes. She had stopped crying, but there were still tears in her eyes.

"I-I'm sorry." I couldn't say anything else. I was unbelievably happy to be holding her in my arms again, but I was a fool if I thought she felt the same way.

"What _are_ you sorry for, Edward? For not believing me when I said there was a new vampire in town? For not apologising when you found out I was right? For leaving me again after you swore not to? For breaking my heart? How many times are you going to put me through this, Edward? I'd appreciate it if you'd let me know, so I can prepare myself for it next time." Her eyes quickly turned from sad to angry, but I could detect traces of pain in her eyes. It hurt me more than her words.

I grabbed her arms gently, making it so she'd have to look at me.

"Bella, I am so sorry. I am sorry for not believing you. I am sorry for not apologising. I am sorry for leaving. I am sorry for breaking your heart. I know my promises don't mean anything to you anymore, but I do promise to never leave you again." As I spoke, the anger went out of her eyes, but the pain, sadness, and tears were still there.

"You've said that before," she whispered. "How can I believe you when you've said that before, but you left anyway? How can I trust you, Edward?" Pain struck me with her words. Of course I couldn't expect her to believe me or trust me, but I had hoped.

"I am so sorry, Bella. I am. I know you can't trust me, but I want you to."

"That's the thing. I think I do. I know I shouldn't, but my heart acts without my head."

My heart leaped with joy when she said that. Does that mean she still loves me?

"I'm sorry," I said again.

"You said you would never leave me unless I wanted you to. So why? Why did you leave? Were you mad at me or something?"

"No, Bella. I wasn't mad at you. I thought you wanted me to leave."

"What? Why would you think that? Because we got into a little fight, because I insisted that I saw a new vampire? Why?"

How did she not know?

"No. Because I saw you with him, Bella. I saw you. He was holding you. The way you only let _me _hold you. I thought you were mad at me. I thought you didn't love me anymore." My voice broke on the last sentence.

Bella's eyes were wide with shock.

"What? You thought I didn't love you? Edward, I could never not love you. Even when you were gone, I loved you."

Her words sparked a joy in me. She loved me.

"What? But, you. Daniel. I saw. What?" Well, that's embarrassing. Speak in sentences, Edward!

"Daniel came to my house to tell me that the Cullens were considering having him in the coven. He told me that you know of his existence. But you never came to apologise."

"I tried. As soon as Carlisle let me go, I raced over to your house to tell you. That's when I saw you with him. That's when I thought you didn't love me anymore. That's when I left."

Bella paused in thought for a minute.

"Edward. That was when I was crying, because you weren't there with me, apologising. Daniel was only holding me in comfort. It didn't became anything more until I learned that you left. Even then, I still loved you. I just tried to ignore it so it wouldn't seem like I was using Daniel. But I think I was. He kept me from falling apart completely."

Now it was my turn to pause and think.

"So, I left because you and Daniel were together, but you weren't together, he was just comforting you because you were crying because I wasn't there?"

"Yep."

I paused to think again.

"Well, crap." My words pretty much summed it up. Bella giggled.

"Crap indeed."

"It was just a big misunderstanding."

"Yes, it was."

A misunderstanding. I shook my head and sighed.

"Edward." I looked at Bella. Fresh tears were in her eyes.

"You're back." A grin spread across her face. She flung her arms around my neck and hugged me. I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her back, breathing in her scent. I was hugging Bella. We were together.

Bella pulled away from the hug, but kept her arms around me. Now she looked into my eyes, her face close to mine.

Instinct overwhelmed me and I found myself closing the space between our lips.

I held her tighter as she kissed me back. Her hands were moving around my head, messing up my hair. I pulled her closer to me, trying to make up for lost time. She seemed happy to comply.

When her breathing became ragged, I moved my lips from hers but kept them on her, kissing her chin, her cheek, her jawline, her neck. I didn't want to stop kissing her, ever. Her breathing resumed normalcy and I moved my lips back up to hers. She kissed me back with more passion than she ever had before, and for once I wasn't about to stop her. I wanted her more than ever.

But my rules still remained, so when she leaned into me, pushing me towards the ground, I had to remove my lips from hers.

"Bella," I sighed.

She groaned.

"Edward, I haven't seen you for a month. Or more, I really don't know."

"I know, Bella. And I've missed you. More than you could possibly imagine. But, it doesn't change anything as far as that goes."

She leaned back and whimpered, trying to give me the puppy dog pout.

"You still have to marry me first."

"Okay." She flung her arms around my neck again, this time with force. I leaned back automatically. I was used to moving around her, so that my strong, hard body wouldn't hurt her. So when she pushed me back, I reacted as if she actually had pushed me back, though she didn't have the strength to do it.

Her lips moved around mine with more activity than before. It took me awhile to clear my head and stop her.

"You realise you haven't actually broken up with Daniel yet?" I smiled crookedly at her, but I was not expecting her response.

"Fine. You realise you actually haven't broken up with Ashleigh yet?" She started to get off my lap.

"What?" I held her still, not wanting her to be away from me yet.

"Bella, Ashleigh and I are not together. We never were."

"But then why--" I cut her off.

"I did nothing but drive for a couple of days, but at one point I had to stop and rest and clear my head. She was the waitress in the diner where I stopped. She then followed me to Italy and stopped me from--" I stopped talking, remembering that she didn't like talk of my suicide plans.

"Stopped you from what, Edward? You didn't, you weren't... Edward! What the, why would you, I. Oh my gosh. Edward, so you realise that if Ashleigh hadn't stopped you, you wouldn't be here right now and it would have been all because of a misunderstanding?!"

"Sorry."

"You better never do that again, Edward. I mean it this time. Even if I were to stop loving you, which I never could, you are not allowed to have the Volturi kill you. Do you hear me, Edward? No!" She was so adamant in her demand that I found it hard not to laugh, much less disagree.

"Okay. I'm sorry."

"You better be." She smiled, forcing another crooked grin from me.

"I missed you," I stroked her cheek.

"I missed you, too." She stroked mine, looking into my eyes. How I wished I could read her mind.

"I love you." I tried to make my eyes convey the message as much as possible.

"I love you, too." Her eyes said the same.

I kissed her softly. Then I picked her up in my arms and stood up. I set her down on her feet, my arm still around her waist.

"They're probably wondering where we are," I said. She sighed.

"I have to go break Daniel's heart."

We walked out of the woods together. Together, the way it should be. And the way it will be. Forever

**Awwww, how did you like that ending!? Please review.**


	26. Ending of the Thievery

**Well, the poll was tied. 3 votes for 'I don't want the Thief to end but a sequel would be cool.' and 3 votes for 'Yeah, that was the perfect ending paragraph. End it at chapter 25 and do a sequel.'  
Well, I had to do a chapter 26. And a sequel will be on its way! Thanks to eveyone who voted, even though it only made me had to decide for myself. lol.  
Special thanks to Obsessed.with.writing who has let me use her name and personality as a character in this story! So thanks Ashleigh!! And thanks for all of your ideas!! People, most of my stuff would not exist if Ashleigh had not given me ideas! So thank her yourselves by reading and reviewing her stories!! **

**I do not own Twilight, paramore, or any of the songs mentioned in this chapter!**

**Ashleigh's POV**

"So, Edward came into the diner where I worked..." I was telling the Cullens about what happened from the time Edward and I met to when we got here. Though I was concentrating on telling the story, I noticed when Edward watched as Bella went out the door and followed her.

Good. That's exactly what I wanted him to do.

The Cullens didn't seem to notice Edward or Bella leaving. But it was understandable, I was telling the good part of the story now. Italy.

All of the Cullens' eyes were riveted on me, following my every word. Including Daniel's. Hm. Daniel's eyes seened to hold more interest than the others'. And his eyes were more attractive. The topaz color of his eyes were the exact same color as mine and the Cullens', but it was somehow more beautiful. Of course, his entire face was pretty goodlooking. His hair was insanely lush. He was just so hot and so fit. But why was I thinking that? I loved Caleb. And Daniel loved Bella.

Still, I could notice his attractiveness, couldn't I?

By the time I finished my story and answered all questions the Cullens had, Bella and Edward still weren't back. Again, no one seemed to notice.

"Hey, Ashleigh. Wanna do karaoke?" Alice was asking me excitedly.

"Not really," I tried to answer politely.

"Aw, come on. That's what we were doing before you and Edward came in and broke up the party." She pouted and I laughed.

"You know you're glad to see him."

"And you. Come on, it'll be fun. Besides, you already said that you sang out loud in the airport. Why not now?"

"Because. That's exactly why. I've already suffered the embarrassing experience of singing in public."

Alice groaned. "It's not embarrassing, and we're not public. We're your friends. Come on, I'm sure you have a great voice! There is only one vampire capable of having a bad voice, and you've already heard him sing." I sneaked a peek at Emmett, who was looking at Alice in confusion. I stifled a giggle.

"Come on," everyone was saying.

"Yeah, Ashleigh." It was the first time I heard Daniel speak and the sound of his voice surprised me. I looked over at him. When my eyes caught his, he quickly looked away.

"Okay fine. But you all have to do karaoke too. I won't be the only one." I smirked at Emmett and Alice while the Cullens cheered.

"Yay! I love karaoke," Alice said as she danced over to the stereo.

"What song are you going to sing, Ashleigh?"

"Um. I don't know."

"Ooh, how about the one you sang at the airport?"

"Which one? I sang 'Running Away' the whole song, but I whispered the chorus of 'crushcrushcrush.' "

"Hmm. You're right. 'Running Away' won't apply right now. Just do 'crushcrushcrush.' I love that song." Alice decided eagerly.

My eyes glanced over to Daniel. He saw me look at him. I looked away quickly.

"Sure," I drew in a somewhat shaky breath as Alice started the music to the song.

**Edward's POV**

Bella and I were walking towards the house when I heard singing. Ugh. They were doing karaoke _again_! I groaned, but then I realised that the voice sounded vaguely familiar.

_I got a lot to say to you.  
Yeah, I got a lot to say.  
I noticed your eyes are always glued to me,  
keeping them here and it makes no sense at all._

_They taped over your mouth, scribbled out the truth with their lies.  
You little spies.  
They tapedover your mouth, scribbled out the truth with their lies.  
You little spies._

_  
_The voice was familiar, but with different words. It was Ashleigh's voice, but why did I think I had heard it in a song before?

Suddenly I remembered. The airport. 'Running Away' by the Midnight Hour. That was Ashleigh? She was at the sirport at the same time I was? Odd.

"What?" Bella's voice jolted me out of my thoughts.

"What?"

"You hummed."

"I did? Sorry. I was thinking."

"About what?" It was nice to hear Bella's voice again, reminding me of the time when we were together and I had never left. Everything was back to normal when I was with her. It's like life apart from Bella never existed. And it shouldn't.

"You hear that? Singing. It's Ashleigh. I heard her singing at the airport, but I didn't know it was her."

"Oh." Bella settled back into her own thoughts, but I could tell she was uncomfortable at the mention of Ashleigh.

Soon, we were close to the house.

_Crush... crush... crush... crush crush.  
Two three four!  
Nothing compares to a quiet evening alone.  
Just the one two of us who's couting on.  
That never happened, I guess I'm dreaming again.  
Let's be more than this._

I felt Bella stiffen beside me.

"What's wrong, love?"

"The song." She clenched her teeth.

"You don't like the song?"

"No, I like the song. But, she's singing a song about having a crush on someone and she just got back from Italy with you!" The jealousy in Bella's tone made her voice rise.

"Oh, Bella." I stopped walking and turned around to face her, embracing her in a hug.

"Bella, I love you. Not her. It doesn't matter if she's singing the song about me or not. And I doubt she is, since Alice loves the song and probably forced her to sing it. But Bella, I could never love anyone other than you."

"I guess I was just being stupid," she sighed and we continued walking.

"You are only human after all," I grinned at her. She rolled her eyes but smiled back. I was so glad we were together again.

**Ashleigh's POV**

By the time I finished the song, Edward and Bella were back. They'd come in sometime during the second verse. Bella was happy to be with Edward again. It was so sweet, seeing them together. It made me happy that I had forced Edward to come back. I knew it would turn out well for them.

I couldn't help but smile as I went to take a seat on the Cullens' sofa.

"Yay! Ashleigh, that was better than I thought it would be! But now it's my turn to sing! I wanna do another paramore song!" Alice was so enthusiastic about karaoke. It was slightly unnatural.

"I'll be right back," I heard Edward whisper to Bella. He walked over to me.

"Running away?" He smirked. I looked at him, confused, but then it clicked. The airport. I muttered a curse.  
Edward was there when I sang at the airport. If I had known, I could have stopped him sooner. How did I not notice he was there? And why did I let myself sing at the top of my lungs? Embarrassing enough that a bunch of strangers had heard it, but someone I knew?

It didn't make sense that I cared this much, since I had just done karaoke in front of all the Cullens. But I did. I cared.

Why why why why why?

"Yes, I am," I answered him as I got up from the couch and darted out the door. I raced to the rental car and got in, speeding away quickly.

Why? Why had I done that? Why did I leave? Why did I care that he had heard me at the airport? Why had I sang at the airport? Why why why why why?

**Daniel POV**

When Ashleigh was telling her story, it intrigued me. She was a good storyteller. A writer. I couldn't even focus on her words, just the way her mouth moved as she spoke them. I noticed it when she looked into my eyes. She seemed startled and her words faltered slightly before continuing again. I couldn't help but watch her talk. It was mesmerizing.

I was jolted out of my trance when she stopped speaking and Alice asked her to do karaoke. I was eager for Ashleigh to continue speaking, so I could hear her voice and watch her mouth move. She looked hesitant to do karaoke.

"Come on," everyone was saying.

"Yeah, Ashleigh," I encouraged her. Her eyes glanced over to mine. She was looking into my eyes. I dropped my eyesight quickly, thankful that I could not blush.

Ashleigh agreed and we all cheered. I risked a look at her face again. It was beautiful. Her topaz eyes were much more attractive than mine or any of the Cullens', even though they were the same color. Suddenly, her eyes flickered over to mine again. This time, she was the one to drop the gaze first. Not that it was much of a gaze, since it barely lasted a second.

"Sure," she said shakily as Alice started the music to 'crushcrushcrush' by paramore. Again, I was thankful that I couldn't blush. If Ashleigh had looked at me and then away quickly because of the nature of the song... No, that surely wasn't why. And I didn't care anyway, did I?

She started singing and I was again pulled into a trance as I watched her lips move and heard the beautiful sound of her voice. I never wanted it to end. But it did. And then Edward was talking to her. What was he saying? Pay attention, Daniel!

"Running away?" He smirked. There was a pause and Ashleigh muttered a curse.

"Yes, I am." And she took off quickly. She was out the door before I knew what was happening. Why was she leaving? And why was I feeling compelled to follow her?

I shook my head and turned away from the door. As soon as I did, I regretted it. But I felt happy, too. Edward and Bella were sitting on the couch. Well, only Edward was sitting on the couch, seeing as Bella was sitting on his laps. He had his arms wrapped tightly around her. When Bella saw me looking she jumped up and walked over to me.

"Daniel." Her voice was thick with remorse. I knew what was coming, and it surprised me how calm I was about it.

"You and Edward are back together." It wasn't a question, it was a statement.

"I'm so sorry, Daniel." She reached out to stroke my cheek. I closed my eyes and enjoyed her warm touch, for the last time.

"I knew it would happen eventually. You loved him. You needed him." I tried to smile. I thought Bella had loved me. I thought I had loved Bella.

"I needed you too, Daniel. But to keep me from falling apart while he was gone. I'm so sorry. If I had realised it sooner, I would not have let us grow as close as we did. I don't want to cause you pain, Daniel. I do love you."

"You just love him more," I finished her unspoken sentence.

She sighed. "Yes." She looked at me with sadness and apology in her eyes. But there was something different about her eyes. A light. He made her happy. And who would I be if I denied her that happiness? I never could, of course. As much as I thought I had loved her, I suddenly didn't care for her in the same way as I had. I still cared about her, but not in the same way as she and Edward cared for each other. And that was what love was all about, wasn't it?

Bella kissed me on the cheek and returned to Edward's arms.

"I think I'm going to go back to my life of solitude. This whole coven thing didn't work out for me. Sorry." I went upstairs quickly to pack my things. I didn't want to say goodbye to everyone, but I couldn't stay here. Not only would I have to face the full force of Bella and Edward's love everyday, but I would be denying it to myself. So I was off to find my true angel. The one who would love me back unconditionally.

At least I hoped I would find her.

**Ooh, I wonder who it is! Or will Daniel find her at all? Is he doomed to be heartbroken? Or will Bella realise she doesn't love Edward and go back to Daniel? Has this crazy love triangle got you going insane yet?!**

**Stick around to find out what will happen, because I will be writing a sequel to The Thief!! It's yet to be titled.**

**REVIEW!!**

_Thanks again to Obsessed.with.writing, the best non-beta beta anyone could ever ask for. xoxox_


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